Sarah vs The Unsighted Future
by Go-Chuck-Go
Summary: Sequel to The Brain Snatcher. Sarah and Ellie clash as they fight to save Chuck from an uncertain future. Be warned: Adult themes. Violence. Angst. Death. Chuck/Sarah/Casey/Devon.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This is the sequel to The Brain Snatcher. It may be a difficult read unless you've read the prior story. Thanks Brickpancake for Beta-ing.

Disclaimer: I own my computer. Nothing else.

* * *

Prologue

Sarah Walker

My life has never been easy. But these days make my prior life, as a deep cover CIA Special Agent, seem almost easy. I yearn for the day when it doesn't feel like my insides have been disemboweled.

I never expected love could feel this way.

Of course, I hadn't expected that meeting Chuck Bartowski would change my life. That he would fundamentally alter who I am.

After all, how could a highly trained, mission hardened, CIA Special Agent fall for the awkward nerd working at the local Buy More?

But amazing things sometimes come in unassuming packages. And who would argue that Chuck Bartowski isn't the quintessential unassuming package?

It is ludicrous, really.

When my selfish ex-partner, Bryce Larkin, emailed Chuck the government's most classified secrets, it changed my lovable nerd's life forever.

I sometimes wish that Chuck never received that email. But then, I would have never met him and spent the time needed to know him. I cringe with the knowledge that if I had met him on the street, I would have never recognized the amazing individual that he is.

The very thought makes it difficult for me to breathe. The idea of Chuck Bartowski not being a part of my life is like imagining my life without air. I cannot live without him.

I suppose it's because I was dying before I met him. It wasn't a physical death, but my life at the Agency had finally begun to overwhelm my sense of humanity. I really wasn't a whole person when I met Chuck.

When we met, I told him that I had emotional baggage. I'm not sure why I shared that piece of personal information with him. After all, he was my mark.

But Chuck was an elixir for my soul. He touched something in me that I thought was long past dead.

The rest of the story is in my mission file. Bryce forced Chuck into the world of espionage by turning him into the Human Intersect. I was assigned by the CIA to be his protector and he became something decidedly more than simply my asset.

Whatever it was that linked us together made me feel again. Chuck wanted to name whatever it was that we had. I stubbornly refused to admit that it even existed. I had my professional integrity to maintain. And to be honest, I was afraid.

But I knew I cared for him in a manner that went way beyond my professional obligations. In my quieter moments, I even let myself contemplate more.

Still, I had my duty. When the government ordered Chuck to undergo a series of medical tests, he balked. However, being the CIA trained agent that I am, I cajoled him into it. I had been taught to persevere at all costs.

To my regret, the cost was very high. The medical tests were an insane man's folly. I have come to find out that the doctor nickname among the pencil pushers at the CIA is "The Brain Snatcher." He received the name due to his zest for turning the brains of his patients into something less than human.

But, Chuck was different. His mind is unique and he did what most have not. He survived the doctor's treatment.

However, he did not survive the tests unscathed. The treatment released a torrid of uncontrollable seizures that threaten to take away all that he is. My guilt, for the role I've played in harming him, is paralyzing. I suppose the pain I feel in the knowledge that I am responsible reminds me that I am still human.

I am forced to defend myself from Ellie Bartowski, who is actively attempting to break the bond that connects Chuck and myself. She is desperate. But then again, so am I.

The woman has wronged me. But I know Chuck loves his sister and I love him. I work to ignore my feelings of betrayal. Logically my heads understands her actions. But my heart doesn't understand logic.

I have never waivered in my intentions regarding her brother. I have steadfastly protected him and will continue to do so until my last dying breath. I have pledged this to myself.

I make no apologies. I have killed in cold blood to protect him. Ellie Bartowski knows this and hates me for it.

I cannot change my past and maybe not even my future. But still I try.


	2. Chap 2: Lost ProtectorsBetrayed Friends

* * *

**Chapter 2: Lost Protectors & Betrayed Friends**

Sarah was exhausted. She had been awake for nearly four days. As per her training, she had taken small naps whenever she had a free moment, but the logistics of arranging Chuck's transfer to a private hospital south of Los Angeles had been difficult.

She was awaiting a conference call from her superiors so that she could communicate their status after the train-wreck that was The Institute. Sarah's hands trembled just thinking about the failed mission.

She felt cursed. Ellie Bartowski had pushed Sarah's fragile psyche to the limit. Sarah knew that it would have been so much easier to deal with her, if she had been allowed some semblance of rest. But the blond agent had been given no respite. Sarah had been forced to introduce the young doctor to the brutal nature of her business. It was met by seething hatred by one Ellie Bartowski.

It had all gone so wrong.

Sarah knew that the she was responsible for the young doctor's attitude. But Sarah had been frantic when Ellie had closed the Panic Room door on her. It was the culmination of all the attempts made that day to separate her from Chuck. She had stopped thinking like an agent, and to her dismay, she had simply lost it. She had pounded on the Panic Room door in a frenzy. Sarah guiltily realized that she had momentarily lost her sanity. In that moment, she had been capable of anything. She was undoubtedly aware that Ellie Bartowski had watched her meltdown through the surveillance feeds in the Panic Room.

Eventually, Sarah's sanity had returned. It had come blazing back when she received a telephone call from Director Graham. It was like cold water had been thrown on her, and a life jacket had been thrown out to her in the sea of events that had catapulted her out of control.

Unfortunately, that control was severely tested almost immediately. She had reported her success in retrieving Chuck, but was forced to admit that Ellie had barricaded her brother and herself inside The Panic Room.

Graham had been shocked. He was alarmed by Ellie's appearance in Monterey, her knowledge of the events that had unfolded, and most importantly, the obvious distrust she felt to warrant barricading herself in The Panic Room. However, the director had lost too much that day to allow a single doctor to trifle with their mission. Graham immediately ordered Sarah to take all necessary measures to gain control of The Intersect.

It had devastated Sarah. It amounted to a termination order with prejudice. It came at a time when she felt like she was in an emotional and physical freefall. Her body had not totally recovered from her near electrocution and her emotions were raggedly on public display.

She needed Chuck more than she had ever needed anyone. She needed to feel him and touch him. Sarah needed to know he was still alive and she could ground herself with the knowledge that he was still with her. She needed confirmation that "they" were still possible.

However, Ellie Bartowski stopped all that.

The doctor kept Sarah at bay. More importantly, Ellie kept Sarah, the agent, from doing her job. The agent's emotions were on edge and her training threatened to kick in, without restraint. Sarah remembered that she had considered Ellie her friend, and that Chuck loved his sister without bounds.

Sarah struggled to balance these conflicting elements within her.

Sarah stared quietly at the door. She knew how to open it, but struggled at the brutality of the act. Finally, the Agent spoke.

"Ellie, I know that you can hear me. You need to listen to me. No one else needs to get hurt. No one else needs to get involved in this." Sarah chided herself. It sounded like she was almost pleading. She forced herself to focus.

Ellie sat at the control panel of the surveillance system inside the Panic Room. She heard what Sarah said, but she was confused. No one else was going to get hurt. Bill Tanner was already dead, and her brother was in the Panic Room with her. The _**very**_ room that Sarah had said was nearly impenetrable.

Ellie furled her eyebrows in concern. She was in control. But she didn't like the icy calm that had overtaken the blond spy. It was ominous and Ellie felt a chill slide down her body.

Sarah had turned to ice. Looking up at the surveillance camera, she willed Ellie to see her resolve.

"You need to open the door Ellie. I neither have the time, nor am I in the mood for games. This is serious business. You are not prepared to fight me. I promise you that I am sworn to protect Chuck. I will not harm him. But I will not allow you to keep me from him."

Ellie almost chuckled at the blonde woman's arrogance. She was actually giving her an ultimatum. It was ludicrous. Ellie was safe behind several feet of reinforced concrete and hardened steel. She would have laughed outright, if not for the terrifyingly coldness in Sarah's voice.

"Okay Ellie. Don't say I didn't warn you," replied Sarah. She started to pace around the room. Sarah sighed in regret. She knew it was, 'Show Time'.

* * *

Sarah walked up to the camera and in exaggerated movements looked at her watch.

"What time is it? Wow! It's nearly midnight. Isn't Devon's shift ending?"

Sarah gave a chillingly feral grin into the camera.

"Oh I know. He usually doesn't leave for another half hour even though his shift has ended. He likes to check on his patients. From there he usually walks around the corner to that all night diner and grabs a small snack before he heads home."

Sarah feigned deep thought. "What agent do we have on him tonight, let me think. It would be a shame if something happened to him."

Sarah pulled out her telephone and brandished it before the camera. Her eyes were devoid of any emotion, but she smiled chillingly.

"It would take one call from this phone, and Devon would be dead. One call," remarked Sarah.

Sarah tilted her head. "But I'm not going to do that Ellie. Rest assured." Sarah smiled into the camera and said, "I'm going to have him picked up and brought here so that you can watch me hurt him."

Ellie's face went white. Her blue eyes filled with tears. She covered her mouth with her hands, as an anguished cry escaped her mouth. She fumbled with the control panel until she found the microphone. She keyed it on and screamed.

"You bitch! You leave him alone!" Tears washed down Ellie's face. Her hands trembled in fear. _How could this be happening?_

The young doctor stared at the monster in the monitor. Sarah stood completely calm. Her eyes stared directly into the camera. In that moment, Ellie had no doubt about Sarah's intent nor her resolve.

Ellie started to cry loudly. How could she choose between her brother and Devon. She knew she couldn't stay in the Panic Room forever. She just couldn't let Sarah near her brother.

It was primal. She knew the blond could take her brother away from her. Ellie had to protect him, even if he didn't want that protection.

But how could she let Sarah hurt Devon? He was the love of her life. She knew what Sarah was capable of. She had witnessed her brutality in the treatment room. Sobs wracked through Ellie. She turned on the microphone.

Ellie's voice cracked. "Sarah…no, please, no. Don't you have any morals?"

The blond agent heard the desperation in Ellie's voice. A large part of Sarah wanted to cry out and comfort Ellie. She wanted to tell Ellie that she could never hurt her or Devon.

But the Agent in Sarah was resolved. It willed Sarah to remain unmoved by Ellie's plea. She needed to gain control of Chuck and it was the only way.

The cool blond showed no emotion as she peered into the surveillance camera.

"Ellie, the organizations involved in this are powerful. You saw a large portion of California shut down in an attempt to capture Chuck. These organizations will stop at nothing to capture him. I do not have the luxury to debate morals with you. If it takes Devon screaming in agony for you to understand, then so be it. I will go to the extreme, to secure Chuck."

Both women held their breath.

"I am going to count to five. If you don't open this door, I will make the call." Sarah knew they were in a stand-off. She prayed that Ellie would blink.

Guttural noises started to escape from Ellie's throat and sobs wracked her body. Her eyes and nose ran profusely. She absently tried to wipe the moisture from her face. _How could she choose_?

Casey awoke to Ellie's cries of anguish. He did not open his eyes. Instead, he began to flex each of his limbs in an effort to ascertain his condition. He listened intently to the drama unfolding between the women.

Walker certainly must have been pushed to her limit to actually be threatening to torture Devon. He knew the situation must be grim. He felt sorry for her. Casey knew how Walker felt about the Bartowskis. This must be killing her. Hell, he only cared half as much about them as she did, and just listening to this was killing him. Casey wasn't sure he had enough balls to threaten Ellie in this manner. God the situation was a cluster.

Casey grimaced when he heard Walker begin the count. He had to stop the situation from escalating further. Taking a deep breath, he ignored the burning pain in his chest as he started to move. He stood up and stumbled towards the door.

Ellie saw a movement in the corner of her eye. She yelped when she saw that John Casey was on his feet and heading towards the door. She jumped up and ran at him. Her life depended on stopping him.

The young doctor slammed her body against the agent from the side. He cried out in pain, but buffered her attack. Even in his weakened condition, she was no match for his bulk. His momentum propelled them towards the door.

When they reached it, he hit the mechanized switch that opened the door. He released his breath, as he heard the 'click' as the door locks released.

His burst of energy left him and he fell against the wall in exhaustion. His torso was on fire. He glanced down at himself and was surprised by the bandages on his torso. They were turning red at an alarmingly fast pace.

He remembered that he had a torn spleen. Looking up at Ellie he saw that she was looking at him in horror. She looked up and sputtered, "I must have broken your stitches, when I hit you."

John didn't remember anything about stitches. He felt light headed, but asked, "Stitches?"

Ellie gulped. "I repaired your spleen."

Their eyes met. He looked down taking in her trembling body. He saw the tears in her eyes and the underlying truth in them. When he had needed her, she had saved his life.

She had saved him even after he had threatened to kill her brother to keep The Intersect from falling into the wrong hands.

He pursed his lips as an altogether foreign feeling invaded his body. Recognizing his reaction, he closed his eyes and sighed. The situation was so incredibly fucked up.

They heard a clanging as the Panic Room door swung open with force. Both their heads swiveled as they looked towards the door.

* * *

The door was open.

Sarah mustered all the discipline that her training had ever instilled in her, to maintain control of her raging emotions. She knew that she had crossed a point of no return in her friendship with Ellie. She mourned its loss. She knew that their friendship would never recover from where she was about to go.

Sarah entered the Panic Room like an icy robot. Grimacing to herself, she realized that she felt like a very dangerous, icy robot.

When Ellie saw Sarah she was paralyzed with fear. She was more afraid of Sarah than when she was trapped underneath the desk on the Observation Deck.

Sarah focused her icy regard squarely on Ellie. She was like a predator hunting prey. Ellie felt primal terror course through her. Like a trapped animal, she felt the need to flee. She tripped backward in a haste to increase the space between her and the dangerous blond agent. The room sizzled with danger.

Casey was alarmed. He knew by Sarah's blank stare and icy demeanor that Walker was at her breaking point.

"Walker, get control of yourself," ordered Casey as the blood stain on his bandages started to look like a bull's-eye.

Casey saw that Sarah was in her most detached professional mode. She was distancing herself emotionally. It was if she was preparing herself for something distasteful.

He looked over at the young doctor and grunted in pain. Realization tore through him. Ellie was Walker's probable target.

The doctor had barricaded herself in The Panic Room. Their superiors would not have taken that lightly. Casey realized that Sarah was working a termination order. His breath caught. He felt the burn of acid in his stomach.

Casey tried to get Sarah's attention, but she never took her eyes off Ellie.

Casey bellowed, "Walker!" His booming voice startled Sarah out of her reverie. She looked at him questioningly.

"With prejudice, Sarah," Casey replied quietly. He saw the first trace of emotion filter across her face. The agents communicated silently with their eyes.

Sarah broke off her gaze and sighed. It was the first sound that she made since she entered the Panic Room. Her shoulders slumped ever so slightly.

She began to absently trace her fingers along the wall. The movement helped her calm her riotous emotions.

Without looking at Ellie, Sarah asked, "How is Chuck?"

Ellie gulped. She wanted to answer sarcastically, but her inner-voice screamed at her to be careful.

In her most clinical voice, Ellie replied, "I've given him some anti-seizure medication and have him sedated. He needs to be taken to a hospital immediately."

Sarah continued to trace her hand against the wall, as she considered Ellie's words. Ellie noted that the blond agent looked so remote and cold. She didn't even act like she had heard a word that Ellie had said.

It unnerved the young doctor. Ellie noticed that Sarah avoided looking at Chuck. Ellie shook her head in puzzlement. Sarah had threatened to torture Devon to get to Chuck. She had brutally threatened ungodly acts to get what she wanted.

And now, she had an unrestricted path to Chuck. But did she use it? Ellie huffed in disgust. No, not Sarah. The blond agent just stood there. She was even unwilling to look at her brother.

Ellie didn't understand Sarah. Not at all.

A painful grunt made the women look over at Casey. He fell to the floor as the pain in his torso had overtaken him. Sarah noted his white face and bloody bandages.

Ellie began to run towards Casey in concern. But Sarah grabbed Ellie's arm and swung her against the wall with force. Sarah slammed her arm against Ellie throat. Sarah applied just enough pressure to make it difficult for Ellie to breathe. The agent stared directly into the doctor's eyes.

"You will not move, unless I give you permission. You will not speak, unless I give you permission. You fight me and I will terminate you."

The blonde agent's eyes narrowed. "But before I do, I will make you watch me kill Devon painfully."

Ellie started to respond, but Sarah increased the pressure on her neck.

"I've already been given the order to terminate you, for your antics. You are alive at my discretion. You are useful to me now. Stop being useful and you are dead. Got it?"

The brunette nodded as a painful sob escaped her lips. She averted her eyes. She couldn't look at the woman, she once considered a friend.

* * *

After Sarah's confrontation with Ellie, everything seemed to blur. Sarah was ordered to go off-the-grid. Her superiors had been shocked at Fulcrum's level of infiltration into their respective organizations. Neither was confident that The Intersect could be kept safe in a governmental facility.

Sarah supposed that it was good news. Chuck wouldn't be placed in an underground bunker any time soon.

The blond agent arranged for a private medi-evac company with paramilitary affiliations to extract them from The Institute.

When they were about to leave, Ellie had begun to aggressively rant about rushing Chuck to the nearest hospital. Sarah had slapped Ellie in response. Sarah asked the doctor if she had been given permission to talk. Ellie's eyes widened in shock, but turned her head away in submission.

Sarah noted that pure hatred in Ellie's eyes as she looked away. It killed Sarah, but she needed absolute control over Ellie. The next few days were going to be unimaginably dangerous. There could be no mistakes.

* * *

Sarah wanted nothing more than to rush Chuck and Casey to the closest hospital. But the Fulcrum threat was too great. She was a lone agent without back-up. She couldn't protect her three charges at a local hospital. Fulcrum was sure to be monitoring hospital admissions.

They had to proceed to their final destination point. She could only hope that Ellie Bartowski's medical skills were good enough to keep Chuck and Casey alive until they reached their destination.

Their helicopter took them to a small airstrip about 100 miles away that supported the small agricultural community of Gustine. The airstrip was mostly used by local farmers for crop dusting. There were quite a few raised eyebrows as she arranged for a small Learjet to shuttle them away using the airstrip. She could only hope that the airstrip was so small, that Fulcrum would not notice their getaway.

From Gustine, they flew to Las Vegas where they arranged for a second helicopter to fly them to a secured hospital near San Diego.

Throughout their journey, Ellie followed Sarah's orders without fault. But Sarah could feel the hatred emanating from the doctor. It felled Sarah. She had forced Ellie into submission to save all their lives. But the cost was exorbitantly high. It tortured Sarah to think about the ugly and twisted connection that she now shared with the doctor.

Chuck never regained consciousness. Sarah supposed it was for the best. He needed time for his body and mind to recover. She would not allow herself to look at him. She knew that if she stared too long at his brown curly hair and lovable lips, she would truly break.

She had to be strong. Sarah was responsible for all their lives. She couldn't afford to breakdown in Chuck's arms. It didn't matter that she longed to hold him and confess the terrible things that she had done to protect them all.

* * *

The end destination was a private medical facility outside of Escondido. Sarah was wary, but the security at the hospital was top notch. She was also buoyed by the fact that Ellie Bartowski seemed impressed with the treatment provided at the facility. Sarah had no way of gauging the quality of treatment, so she watched Ellie's reactions for clues. She did not share her concerns with the doctor.

Both Chuck and Casey were assigned private rooms. Casey had improved and was close to being released. Unfortunately, Chuck's condition remained unchanged.

Consultations with several neurologists confirmed Ellie's initial assessment and treatment. Chuck was kept under heavy sedation to allow his brain to recover. Sarah silently thanked Ellie for her quick thinking at The Institute.

Sarah kept Ellie under house arrest. Ellie was forced to stay in a locked room, in the psych ward of the facility. Ellie was not allowed to talk to anyone. Sarah had frightened Ellie with the consequences. Ellie's only bright spot was that Sarah allowed Ellie to sit with Chuck frequently.

It calmed the young doctor. But Ellie was quite aware that she was, in effect a prisoner, and Sarah was her jailor.

* * *

Sarah grimaced and she tried to concentrate on the tele-conference she was about to attend with Graham and Beckman. She knew that it would not look good for her superiors to see her collapse from exhaustion. She rallied all the energy that she had left and absently ran her fingers through her unruly hair. The green light on top of the monitor lit up, as the teleconference started.

* * *

"Yes, Ma'am. The neurologists have reduced Chuck's medication. They think he will regain consciousness sometime today," explained Sarah, tiredly.

General Beckman looked down at her notes and then up at Agent Walker. The young woman looked ragged over the video conference terminal. Beckman sighed to herself. The last four days had been difficult on all of them.

Agent Walker had been on the front line for sometime, and field fatigue must be at play. She nodded absently to herself. The situation was not optimal, but they could not introduce any new agent to the mix. It was just too dangerous.

"Very good Agent Walker. The extra effort you've taken on this mission has been duly noted. Once Agent Casey is available, he can relieve you for some needed rest," remarked General Beckman.

Sarah grimaced and stood up straighter. She must be showing her exhaustion. With more conviction that she felt, Sarah replied, "Not a problem Ma'am. I can handle the situation." Sarah paused and then added, "But it will be good to have Agent Casey back."

"Yes, Agent Casey's return will level out the workload. No need for the heroics Walker. We know you've only received a few hours of sleep since you and your charges were extracted from The Institute," replied Director Graham.

"Yes, Agent Walker. It is unfortunate that you've been required to go to physical extremes to maintain protection for your charges. But we cannot risk assigning you backup. We cannot afford additional personnel knowing or even suspecting the identity of The Intersect. We want you to continue to use private resources for treatment of The Intersect until further notice."

"Understood, Ma'am."

"Agent Walker we are actually surprised by one item in your report," remarked General Beckman.

Sarah raised her eyebrows in question, but did not speak.

General Beckman pinched her lips in distaste. "It is the Ellie Bartowski situation."

* * *

Sarah left the teleconference room deep in thought. She absently noted a man standing in the corridor. Per her training, she tensed automatically as she assessed his threat.

She jumped when she recognized that it was Casey. She released the hand that she had placed upon her weapon and walked towards her partner.

"Have you finally sprung the coop?" asked Sarah, with a small smile.

Casey shrugged. "You look like shit, Walker. Have you slept at all?"

She shrugged and raised her eyebrows in defeat. "Sleep requires someone else to stand post."

Casey grimaced knowingly. Looking at the bags under Sarah's eyes, he gently asked, "Do you still have Ellie under lock and key?"

Sarah nodded sadly. She did not trust herself to speak.

Casey tensed his shoulders, lost in thought.

"Why don't you get yourself some sleep for few hours? God knows you need it."

Casey saw a sudden brightness in Sarah's eyes. She looked up at him pleadingly. She was asking him something.

He stared at her in puzzlement. Then realization hit him. "Walker, there is no hope for you."

He shook his head in disgust, but grunted his consent. "You got eight hours."

* * *

Sarah entered Chuck's room and went to his bed. This was the first time that she allowed herself to really look at him. He was so quiet. It was not at all like the Chuck Bartowski that she knew.

She ran her hands through his hair. A single tear fell down her cheek. She was just so tired.

She climbed into his bed and buried her face into the crook of his neck. She took deep breaths as her body relaxed. His smell calmed her. It reminded her that she was loved.

She wrapped herself around him and promptly fell into a dreamless sleep. Tomorrow would come soon enough.


	3. Chapter 3: A Sister's Worry

**

* * *

**

Chapter 3: A Sister's Worry

**Psych Ward, a Private Hospital, somewhere outside Escondido, CA**

Ellie struggled to breathe as her pulse raced and sweat formed around her temples and down her spine. She started to cry but the noise jolted her awake. She opened her eyes. Relief overwhelmed her at seeing her hospital room. She took a deep breath and exhaled as she tried to calm her riotous emotions. She was thankful to finally have escaped her awful dream.

The young doctor had suffered from horrifying nightmares since the night at The Institute. Her dreams varied, but they always starred Sarah Walker as her brother's food service employed girlfriend, who suddenly morphed into a cold-blooded killing machine.

Ellie knew her dreams played like some bad horror movie. But she knew in her case, it wasn't. Her nightmares were real. She was reliving the terrible night over and over again in her dreams. It was unsettling and it made Ellie's hands shake. The nightmares just served to highlight her precarious situation.

Ellie grabbed her head and shook it for at least the hundredth time. She had thought of Sarah Walker as her friend. But everything that she held as true suddenly seemed to have spiraled out of control.

Nothing in her life seemed to be what she thought it was.

Ellie had watched Sarah Walker kill in cold blood, imprison her in The Psych Ward, and threaten to kill her if she attempted to escape. It was surreal. It was frightening, it made Ellie want to cry out in anguish.

And yet, she had no idea why these events had befallen her. Ellie could only stare at the bare walls of her hospital room and wonder what her brother did to ensnare them in a world with Sarah Walkers in them. She truly hated that woman.

Tears fell down her cheeks as she thought about her brother. She had witnessed her baby brother being tortured. She hadn't understood what had happened to him. But the grim seizures that wracked his body afterwards were a clear sign of trauma.

As part of her residency, she had spent time in neurology. She knew that the seizures were a symptom of a traumatic brain injury. She held little hope that he would escape without some type of brain damage.

Her breath caught when she thought about the possibility that he would never wake up. It had always been "them" against the world. She couldn't comprehend her life without her beloved brother. Overcome with emotion, she gathered herself in a ball and cried.

* * *

**Two Miles Outside of Gustine, CA**

The Fulcrum agent pulled into the parking lot of the City of Gustine's Airstrip. He was checking all the airports surrounding The Institute, looking for indications of an injured man being evacuated.

He was following up on this lead that the Fulcrum interrogators been beaten out of Bryce Larkin. The CIA agent had revealed that The Intersect had been injured at The Institute. It hadn't been easy but they had gotten the information out of Larkin after numerous days of torture. Larkin was a tough SOB, but he couldn't last forever.

Fulcrum would eventually break Bryce Larkin; and when they did, they would finally have the name of The Intersect.

The Fulcrum agent smiled wickedly at the thought of having The Intersect in their control.

* * *

**Psych Ward, somewhere outside Escondido, CA**

Completely wiped out from crying, Ellie laid on her bed thinking about her options. Ellie wanted to flee, even if it meant that she would jeopardize her life.

But Chuck was in no condition to run. She bit her lip with indecision.

Ellie couldn't leave her brother. It wasn't in her. But her stomach turned as she thought about her situation.

Sarah Walker was in total control of the care of her brother. She had to admit that the medical treatment that Chuck had received at the private hospital was impressive. But it was all at the mercy of Sarah.

At one time, this wouldn't have been a concern. She had trusted Sarah with her brother. But now, Ellie didn't know what the icy blond's intentions were. _Was she providing treatment because she cared or was it just a means to an end? _

Ellie didn't know. And frankly, at this point she didn't care. All she knew was that Chuck had to get well. And then, she would spirit her brother away from Sarah and whatever evil life that she had involved him in.

Ellie realized that she couldn't flee. She just had to bide her time. She would find a way to save hime. She loved Chuck too much to abandon him.

Ellie's thoughts were interrupted by the clicking of the lock on her door. She rallied her courage.

The icy blond was the only one allowed into her room and it seemed that the only thing that happened between them was threats. Ellie wiped away the moisture on her cheeks and turned her back to the door. She just couldn't look at Sarah.

Casey entered the room and took in Ellie's prone form. He had heard her crying through the door earlier and he had waited until her sobs had quieted.

Not quite knowing what to say to the upset doctor, Casey grumbled, "If it isn't the crazy lady with the needle."

Ellie's whipped her head towards Casey with wide eyes. Her face brightened upon seeing that it was Casey.

"John! It's good to see you up and around," replied Ellie with a small smile. She sat up and turned her body to face him. She looked at him but her eyes kept drifting to his torso.

Casey was puzzled by her behavior until she looked up into his eyes and he saw the guilt in her eyes. She stammered, "How is your chest feeling. It's only been four days since I…I broke your stitches?"

His agent persona melted a bit upon seeing her concern. "Forget it," mumbled Casey, uncomfortably. He started to speak but stopped when he noticed her puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks. His eyes narrowed as he took in her distress.

His silent assessment made Ellie uncomfortable. However she rallied her courage, and asked, "John, can you tell me what's going on. I really don't understand why my brother was tortured or why bad men are after him. Or why he is involved with people like you and Sarah."

Casey winced at her question. "Ellie, a lot of what you just asked requires a security clearance to know, so I can't tell you. But even if I could, I'm not sure that I should. You are much safer...the less you know."

Ellie's eyes flashed and she felt a stab of anger. "Are you kidding me? At The Institute, no one cared if I knew anything as they shot bullets at me."

She angrily jumped off her bed and paced her room. She turned towards Casey and yelled, "It didn't matter to the bloody ice queen when she was threatening me and Devon's life... that I didn't know a thing."

Her shoulders slumped. In a much quieter voice, she added, "It hasn't mattered for the last four days while I've been imprisoned in a Psych Ward... that I didn't know anything."

Tears started to flow. "I just don't see how telling me what my brother is involved in...is going to put me in any more danger than I already am," anguished Ellie.

Casey grimaced. Walker had used intimidation to keep Ellie in line but with some significant consequences. Sarah had to fix this situation soon.

Not quite knowing how to respond, he tore his gaze from Ellie. He looked around the bland room and sighed. He knew that this was definitely an arena where he shouldn't tread. It wasn't his forte. People's feelings weren't something he was good at. He cared enough about Ellie Bartowski that he didn't want to say the wrong thing.

Looking to escape their conversation, Casey asked, "Do you want to get out of here?"

* * *

**Two Miles Outside of Gustine, CA**

The agent's shiny cowboy boots crunched along the rocky pathway to the front office.

He reached for the door handle to the front office and pulled.

"Can I help you?" asked a young sandy hair boy.

"You work here?" quizzed the agent.

"Yeah, I work the gas pumps and watch the office when the office manager is out," replied the boy. "What can I help you with?"

The agent racked his brain trying to decide how to ask they boy about the flight activity at the airstrip. Finally he had an idea.

"No, I needed directions back to I-5. Have you been busy? I know there's a flight show over near Vallejo. Have you had much air traffic come through?"

The boy laughed. "Are you kidding, mister? Here? Nothing comes through here except crop dusters."

But then the boy gave the agent a considering look. "We did have a Lear Jet come through four days ago. But it was a medical flight. They had two guys in stretchers taken off a helicopter and put on the jet. But we don't normally get that kind of traffic here."

"Really?" asked the agent, his interest suddenly piqued. "Did you hear where they were going?"

The boy squinted for a second and said, "Vegas." The boy laughed again and said, "I guess that's a little funny considering the two guys were hurt and all."

The agent shrugged and left the airstrip office with an evil smile on his face.

* * *

**Hallway outside of Chuck Bartowski's Hospital Room**

Casey and Ellie sat on two worn chairs in a visitor's area outside of Chuck's room. Casey had positioned them so he could maintain an unobstructed view of Chuck's door.

Casey had a pen and was busy writing on a piece of paper. Finishing the last entry, he inquired, "So these are all the drugs that we would be needed to treat Chuck?"

Ellie eyed him curiously. She bit her lip and replied warily, "Yes. But I don't understand why you are asking."

Casey grimaced. "People are still looking for Chuck. We might have to leave quickly and I'm just trying to establish a contingency plan in that event," explained Casey patiently.

Ellie's eye grew wide. "We're still in danger?" Her voice lowered to a whisper.

Casey's eyes narrowed at her sudden alarm. He needed to make sure she understood the seriousness of the situation.

"Chuck is always in danger. That is why he has two full time agents assigned to his security. It is also why Sarah and our superiors took your antics at The Institute so badly. This is not, nor will it ever be, a game," said Casey in a deadly serious voice.

Ellie's heart fell and she felt her hands begin to tremble. The enormity of the situation made her feel ill. She averted her eyes from Casey and looked around the visitor's area nervously. She glanced at Chuck's door and suddenly felt the need to be near her brother. Ellie stood up.

"Speaking of my brother, maybe I should look in on him." Ellie started to walk towards the door.

"No don't go in there," ordered Casey.

She turned to Casey in concern. His tone had suddenly become tense. Furling her brow in puzzlement, she asked, "Why?"

"Walker is in there."

Ellie looked at Casey sharply. Anger dripped from her. "You let me sit out here while that thing was alone with my defenseless brother?"

She spun around and started to march to the door with determination. Just as she reached for the door handle, Casey slammed into her. He swung her around and plastered her against the door with his body.

"Don't you ever disobey me again. Do I make myself clear?" seethed Casey.

Ellie's eyes grew big. She suddenly became alarmed as she noted the hard and deadly feel of his body against hers. She nodded silently as the now familiar feeling of fear coursed through her.

Casey relaxed when he saw her agreement, but was slightly taken back when he saw the fear in her eyes. He felt the need to explain.

"Walker is asleep in there. Regardless of what you think of her, she stayed up four days to protect your defenseless brother. She also made sure that you were protected from the outside world and from yourself. Because let me tell you Ms. Bartowski, at this point in time, someone needs to keep you from doing something really stupid," explained Casey, heatedly.

Ellie looked into his eyes, clearly affronted at his remarks.

He responded by leaning even closer to Ellie. He seethed, "She protected me... in my incapacitated state. So don't you even try to tell me that Sarah Walker is anything but a consummate professional who would give a great deal to protect your brother and both of us," growled Casey.

Ellie nodded in confusion. "But why can't I…"

He swung her around and made her look through the glass. He pointed at Sarah who was snuggled up against Chuck.

Casey explained, "Agents are trained from day one that sleeping is the most vulnerable state that they will ever be in. When startled, an agent will come out of sleep ready to shoot first and ask questions later."

Ellie looked up at him aghast. "Is my brother in danger?"

Casey chortled in disgust. "Your brother is the safest place he could ever be."

Casey looked down at Ellie's still puzzled face. Sighing in frustration, he explained, "Sarah is like a big, mean grizzly bear protecting her cub. Wake her up and Walker will come out guns blazing to protect Chuck."

"So you are saying that Sarah considers Chuck her child?"

"I didn't say that," shrugged Casey and then continued tiredly, "In the spy world, Chuck is like a child. He's defenseless. And Sarah…Sarah's protective instincts have always been higher than you would expect, even for a protective assignment like this. But Ellie, you've gotten a taste of this world. You should be grateful that Chuck has Sarah."

Ellie turned towards the door and looked through the window. She considered her brother and Sarah as they laid snuggled together.

"But she is a killer," cried Ellie in confusion. _How could her gentle brother be with someone like that?_

Casey grabbed Ellie by the shoulders and spun her around to continue their confrontation. But he stopped when he saw her face. He saw a myriad of raw emotions on her face. He recognized that she was confused and couldn't process anything more.

Casey sighed in resignation. "Come on, it's time I got you back to your room."  


* * *

**Chuck Bartowski's Hospital Room, Escondido CA**

Sarah awoke but she didn't open her eyes. She let her senses take in her surroundings. Awareness of the body entwined with hers made her smile. She was with Chuck. Her body relaxed as it recognized the nearness of him.

She opened her eyes and drank in the sight of him. A feeling of melancholy floated through her. The love of her life was in her arms. It felt so right, but also so bittersweet.

Tragically, Chuck laid in her arms, but was injured. He had a traumatic brain injury, of which, no one knew if he would ever awake from. It was so wrong; so unfair.

Pain seared her heart at the dire nature of their situation. But Sarah chose to ignore it. For a few fleeting moments, she simply wanted to be with Chuck.

She reached out her arm and laced her fingers through his hair. She loved the feel of it, as it glided through her fingers. The intimate act always made him feel like he was hers.

Her eyes shifted to his face and its still form. She frowned. His stillness was so unlike "her" Chuck. She tensed at the reminder that "her" Chuck might be gone.

Her emotions suddenly seemed to clog up her ability to breathe. She clutched him to her and buried her head near his neck. She willed herself not to cry, but a few sobs racked her body.

She raised her lips to his ear and whispered, "Chuck you can't leave me. I need you."

She closed her eyes as her need for him overwhelmed her. She laid her head down on his chest. She could only lay there as emotions surged through her.

After the storm had past, Sarah laid quietly upon his chest listening to his heartbeat. She was lost in thought; when suddenly her own heart stopped. Holding her breath, she listened as her ears picked up a faint whisper.

"Sarah…."

* * *

Author's note: Thanks to Sharp for beta-ing an early draft. All new errors are strictly my own.


	4. Chapter 4: What We Do For Love

**Chapter 4: What We Do For Love**

* * *

**Henderson Executive Airport- eleven miles south of Las Vegas, NV**

The Fulcrum agent sprinted out of The Henderson Executive Airport into the late afternoon heat. He walked briskly with his ear to his cell phone.

"We have confirmation. A charter left four days ago with two injured men. Their destination was Escondido. I will take the next available commercial flight there."

"Have an intercept team meet me there. It looks like our lead is solid."

* * *

**Chuck Bartowski's Hospital Room, Escondido, CA**

"Sarah…"

Sarah thought that she might have imagined that she heard Chuck say her name. She clutched at his hospital gown praying that it was true.

She held her breathe as she willed him to speak again.

"Sarah," gasped Chuck, slightly above a whisper.

"Chuck, I'm here. Can you hear me?" cried Sarah urgently. She ran her hands over his forehead and along the side of his face, willing him to respond to her.

He held his hands over his eyes and mumbled something about the lights hurting his head. Sarah was slight surprised since the overhead lights were already off, but the urgency of Chuck's cries quickly spurred her to grab the room remote. She pushed the button for the motorized blinds and the room darkened noticeably.

"It that better Chuck?" asked Sarah with concern.

He nodded and motioned for some water. She used the bed remote and raised him to almost a sitting position and served him some water from a pitcher that was at his bedside. As he drank thirstily, she sat next to him anxiously waiting for him to speak. She had to know whether he was alright; whether they were alright.

His lack of words alarmed her as she thought of the other victims of Dr. Lindermann's work. Chuck had only made hand gestures and grunts as a means of communication. It unnerved her as thoughts of brain damage filtered through her mind. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, to reassure him.

"Chuck, let me get a doctor. We've all been worried that you wouldn't wake up. I'm sure everything will be alright. I promise," soothed the blond agent, as she started to get off the bed.

Chuck swiftly reached out and grasped her arm. He shifted closer and turned his deep brown eyes on her. He murmured, "Need. You."

Sarah melted. His eyes were full of vulnerability as he struggled to form the words. It made her breath hitch. She knew then, that he had not come out of his ordeal unscathed.

But it didn't matter. He was alive. She leaned forward and gently grasped his jaw. Her blues eyes went soft as she tried to voice her need.

"Chuck, I need you too." She kissed him gently on the lips and in a broken voice she sobbed, "I've been so afraid that I lost you. I kept thinking that you weren't going to come …"

She gulped. _He didn't need to know the seriousness of the situation. It was too soon._

She added quickly, "….come back to me."

She saw his surprise by her admission. But felt rewarded by the understanding in his eyes. He leaned forward and embraced her. She could tell that he was trying to reassure her. It was so Chuck.

She laid her head on his chest and bathed in the security of his arms. He put his chin against the top of her head. She felt him smile as spoke.

"Sarah. No afraid. Anything."

She pushed against his chest and sat up. She saw his teasing smile. With a furled brow she replied, "Don't joke. You scared me."

Her annoyed words belied the happiness she felt as he grinned at her.

She returned his smile, but let it fade as she realized it was time.

Sarah had promised herself that if he woke up, she would tell him how she felt. She tensed. Needing to reconnect physically with him, she reached out and interlaced her fingers with his.

Chuck watched her warily. He sensed her tension. He held his breath as she stilled.

Sarah looked up into Chuck's eyes intently. Rallying her courage, she spoke.

"I promised myself that the first chance I had…. I'd tell you."

Chuck shook his head in puzzlement at her words.

"I love you."

Her words felled him. It was everything he had ever wanted and thought he'd never get it. Startled by the sudden vulnerability in her eyes, he stopped short his reverie. He quickly embraced her. He whispered into her ear, "Is okay. Love you too."

His words were like a trigger in Sarah. She thought she would never hear them from him.

A flood of emotions that had been bottled up within her started bubble out.

She laughed and cried. She pulled out of his embrace and kissed him on the lips. But this kiss was short, because she had to wipe away the tears that flowed down her face.

Feeling silly, she returned to his embrace. His body was so warm and she felt loved. All was right in the world. She was home.

Sarah hadn't let herself think about how it would affect her to not be with him. But tucked securely in his arms, she recognized how empty her life would be without him.

She needed to tell him. She moved her lips up to his ears and spoke.

"Chuck, I don't think I can live without you."

He furled his brow and turned his head to look at her. His eyes smiled at her as he murmured.

"Me too."

* * *

**Escondido Airport, Escondido, CA**

The Fulcrum agent spoke in to cell phone.

"We have a positive sighting of two injured men taken off the plane and taken by private ambulance out of the airport. It looks like they might be in the area. Check the admission records of all the private hospitals in the area,' barked the Fulcrum agent.

Listening a few minutes, the agent nodded his understanding. "I will be on standby with the rest of the intercept team. Out."

* * *

**Psych Ward, Private Hospital, Escondido, CA **

Casey held Ellie's hand as he directed her back to her room in the Psych Ward. It was a drab room and he knew that Ellie was under strict isolation. Ellie would be unable to communicate with anyone except Walker and himself.

It bothered him. The doctor had saved his life and had always treated him with generosity. Yet, he was imprisoning her in the Psych Ward, while in considerable emotional distress.

He tensed his shoulders. He knew his job sometimes required him to do some distasteful things. He told himself it was a necessarily evil. Still, he could at least try to make the situation a little more tolerable for the doctor.

"Is there anything I can get you, before I leave," offered Casey, as he directed her into her secured room.

Ellie snorted in disdain. The young doctor replied, "Yes John, how about some answers. Is it really necessary to keep me imprisoned here for reasons that I can't understand and to be threatened by some cold blooded blond…"

"Stop! Just stop," retorted Casey angrily. "Sarah isn't like that! She had to get you out of The Panic Room as quickly as possible. If you hadn't been such an idiot, things wouldn't have gotten to so out of hand. You could have gotten everyone including your beloved brother killed."

Ellie's body jerked away as if Casey had struck her. He realized that he had said the wrong thing. He watched Ellie's eyes fill with tears. She crossed her arms around her torso and started to shake.

"I would never do anything to harm my brother. I'm not like you people."

Casey sighed and moved across the room in order to comfort her. But after taking a few steps, Casey stopped. He recognized the stupidity of getting entangled with Ellie. This wasn't him. He wasn't normally a hands on type of guy. He was somewhat surprised by his own behavior.

Unaware of Casey's sudden hesitation in offering her a hug, Ellie moved towards the agent. She had missed the feeling of safety that Devon's arms provided. She just needed to feel safe and the offer of a strong male's arms was too enticing. She took the last remaining steps to Casey and embraced him tightly.

Casey tensed at her touch, but he willed himself to stand still. He had initiated it and he couldn't blame her. She was so small and troubled. He knew the last few days had been hard on her. Casey's arms slowly inched around her.

"Ellie, it's going to be okay, honest," commented Casey, as he tried to figure out how to eject himself from her warm embrace.

Casey was torn. He disliked getting entangled in people's feelings, but Ellie Bartowski had saved his life. It was his duty to try to make her feel better. Against his better judgment, he continued to hold her, as she cried in his arms.

Casey was attempting to say something comforting when he heard the door open behind him. A mixture of anger and embarrassment coursed though him. He knew Walker was going to witness his display of softness. It irritated him.

Sarah was astounded when she saw Casey and Ellie in an embrace. It was so unlike her reticent partner. She struggled to maintain her neutral façade.

However, her façade was quickly replaced by a small smile as she watched Casey attempt to extract himself from the doctor's embrace. He was obviously uncomfortable and annoyed that she was witnessing his attempt to comfort Ellie. Her eyes narrowed in amusement.

Casey pushed Ellie away. The young doctor looked somewhat confused until she spotted Sarah. She immediately straightened up and stiffly moved to the far side of the room.

Ellie eyed Sarah and started to pace around the far side of the room angrily. Finally after rallying her courage, Ellie bit out, "Hello bitch."

The words were like an electric bolt coursing through Casey. He coughed in surprise and turned towards Ellie with wide eyed shock. _Did those words actually come out of her mouth? _

Casey blinked his eyes several times. He turned back towards Sarah and gave her his most questioning look.

Sarah looked up at Casey and gave him a resigned smile. Her small gesture let him know that she had been dealing with Ellie's anger for awhile. It also helped him understand why the doctor was still in isolation. He grunted in disapproval.

"Hello Ellie," replied Sarah coolly. "I can see your temper hasn't improved any. Most people would have calmed down by now."

The young doctor stared at the floor not acknowledging Sarah. The blond agent didn't think that they doctor was going to respond, when Ellie interjected.

"Apparently I'm crazy. But don't mind me. It's just hard to mind your manners when you're locked in a Psych Ward. "

Both agents flinched at Ellie's sarcastic tone.

Ellie's attitude pained Sarah, but she did not let her feelings show. Trying to take the high road, the blond agent offered, "Chuck is awake and he wants to see you."

Ellie's sullen attitude faltered and she looked up at Sarah with wide excited eyes. "He's awake? Can he speak?"

Sarah gave Ellie a reassuring smile. "The doctors are with him now. He can speak, but he's having some difficulties putting together sentences. But it's still Chuck."

Ellie stood up straight and squared her shoulders. With eyes flashing, Ellie demanded, "I need to see Chuck right now."

Sarah sighed. She knew that Ellie was going to be unhappy with what she was about to say.

"Okay. I'll take you to him. But I need to go over some ground rules."

Sarah smiled wanly at Casey alerting him to the explosion that was about to happen.

Ellie clenched her fists.

"He's my brother. Why should I have any ground rules to see my own brother?" seethed the young doctor. Ellie wasn't about to let the icy blond make stipulations on her time with Chuck.

Sarah took a deep breath in an effort to keep her temper under control. Sarah was not someone who normally dealt with people's attitudes well.

Sarah continued evenly, "For his safety, I don't want him to know about what happened at The Institute. He's not strong enough to deal with it now. He wouldn't want to see us fighting."

Ellie looked at Sarah with disdain, and asked, "And you think I'm going to hurt him?"

Sarah didn't respond, but her eyes gave her away.

"Bullshit. I've protected him his whole life. I'm not going to hurt him. It's you! You are just trying to hide who and what you really are," replied Ellie heatedly.

Sarah tried to explain, "Come on Ellie. We both care for him. As a doctor, you know…"

But Ellie would have none of it. She knocked over her bedside table.

"Don't you dare talk about caring to me, Sarah! You don't know a thing about caring for someone! You're just a cold blooded killer and the only reason you're with my brother is because… you have an agenda, " yelled Ellie.

Sarah looked awkwardly at Casey. She didn't want to express her feeling in front of Casey, but she knew that is was important for Ellie to understand.

"Ellie, I know you don't understand. I do have an assignment regarding Chuck. But…I…we care deeply for each other," explained Sarah earnestly.

Ellie laughed. Her eyes narrowed and in her most spiteful voice she replied, "So what if you've used the sex card."

Sarah flinched.

"I practically raised my brother. Do you really think he's going to care for you once I tell him what you did to me? Do you really think he'll care for you once I tell him that you threatened to kill me and Devon?"

Sarah blanched.

Ellie saw the color drain from the blond agent's face. It was the first time that Ellie felt like she had any power in her situation. It emboldened her.

"He thinks he loves you. But he could never love someone like you. That's why you don't want me to tell him. You know he will stop thinking that he loves you."

Ellie pointed a menacing finger at Sarah. "When he finds out what you did to me…he's going to hate you Sarah Walker."

Sarah stood completely still. She did not respond. Sarah couldn't respond, she was thunderstruck.

For a few moments, Sarah felt raw naked fear run through her veins. It was true, Chuck's reaction terrified her. She couldn't lose him. Not now. Not ever.

However, Sarah knew she had to be strong. She couldn't let Ellie take control. So with a steely resolve and more calmness than she felt, Sarah took action.

Casey watched as Sarah lost all emotions from his body. He grimaced. Casey knew that this wasn't a good sign. He realized that the young doctor's words must have hit their intended mark.

Casey had always suspected that Sarah had real feelings for Chuck. But hearing Ellie's threats and seeing Sarah's reaction confirmed his suspicions.

It was useful information, but he knew he needed to diffuse the situation. The hospital was too exposed to have such strong discourse between the women. It was still a dangerous situation and it was important for them to work somewhat as a team.

He eyed Sarah critically. He knew Sarah was close to busting a gasket, which wouldn't be good for any of them.

Casey approached Sarah to usher her out the door. But Sarah ignored his advance and stepped around him. Casey sighed. He knew it was not going to be pretty.

Sarah was no longer in the mood to indulge Ellie. The doctor had hit upon a vulnerable spot and the blond agent's temper boiled.

She ambled predatorily towards Ellie. Sarah knew it would scare the young doctor, but she didn't care. Looking as dangerous as possible, Sarah invaded the young doctor's personal space and stared menacingly at the brunette.

"Ellie, do you realize that I don't have to let you see Chuck?" asked Sarah dangerously.

The young doctor's eyes flashed, but she did not respond. Fear was visible in the brunette's deep blue eyes.

"I don't even have to admit that you are alive. I'm in control here. I could tell him you died in The Institute and you would never see him again," taunted Sarah.

Ellie's face turned white.

Sarah smiled at the doctor's reaction. "Now I think you're catching on," replied Sarah with satisfaction.

"The only way you are going to see Chuck is under my rules and at my discretion."

Sarah paused for effect. Then in her most icy voice she spoke.

"It's your choice. See Chuck under my rules. Or you can rot in this room; dead to your brother and to the rest of the world."

Ellie fell to the floor. "No Sarah, please…."

Sarah ignored Ellie and walked away. Sarah motioned to Casey that it was time to leave. Casey rolled his eyes.

Both agents walked towards the door and Sarah left without a backwards glance. Casey hesitated as he watched Ellie crying upon the floor. He wanted to pull her up, but he knew that he and Walker needed to maintain a united front. He sighed and followed the blond agent out the door.

Once outside in the hall, Sarah's shoulders sagged and she let herself fall against the wall. Casey secured the door and angrily turned towards Sarah.

"Christ! What the hell was that, Walker?" seethed Casey. "Ellie Bartowski turned into the Tanzanian devil when she saw you….and you…"

Shaking her head, Sarah interjected, "I know. I tried to be reasonable, but she just pushed me into saying things…that I shouldn't have."

Casey grunted noncommittally. He knew Sarah wouldn't appreciate his thoughts on the matter.

"I'll let her stew a few more minutes and then hopefully she will be ready to go see Chuck under my stipulations, explained Sarah. Shaking her head, she lamented, "But it's one more time that I've used threats to make her behave. The woman is starting to hate me."

"Starting?" replied Casey, dubiously.

"Thanks Casey. I really needed to hear that," mocked Sarah. "We have more important things to think about. The doctors are checking out Chuck now. We need to move soon. Someone is bound to be on our trail. How about you continue working on our travel plans and I'll take Ellie upstairs to see Chuck."

Casey smirked. "Walker, you sure you can handle the little lady all by yourself?"

Sarah eyes narrowed. She didn't appreciate his ribbing. "Speaking of handling Casey, what the hell was that embrace I walked in on?"

Casey's smirk dropped and he suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"She was distressed. I was just helping," replied Casey.

Sarah smiled conspiratorially and winked at Casey.

The hulking agent grunted with disdain. "I am going to check on our new transportation."

Sarah watched Casey scamper down the hallway. She smiled at his reaction to her ribbing.

Rallying the last bit of her patience, she stood up and entered Ellie's room.

* * *

**Gates of the Private Hospital, Escondido, CA**

"Confirmation found, Delta leader. Staff confirms that two injured men and one mentally incapacitated female registered into the hospital four days ago. No agency activity noted. Standby."

The Fulcrum agent tensed. He was anxious for his next set of instructions. He hoped there would be gunplay.

* * *

**Chuck Bartowski's Room, Private Hospital, Escondido, CA**

As Sarah predicted, Ellie Bartowski had acquiesced to all of Sarah's conditions. As such, the women made their way to Chuck's room. Neither spoke. But Sarah was keenly aware of the intense hatred that emanated from Ellie. The blond agent chose to ignore it.

The women entered the darkened room. Ellie immediately went to Chuck's bedside. Sarah followed and stood on the other side of Chuck's bed. They both peered down at his prone form.

"Chuck, Are you okay?" asked the young doctor anxiously.

"Ellie," replied Chuck warmly. "Is good. Sis." Chuck furled his eyebrows frustrated by his inability to talk.

Ellie smiled, but saw the fear in his eyes. She realized that he was upset at his inability to form sentences well. She tried to comfort him.

"Chuck, it's common for patients with traumatic brain injuries to initially have difficulty speaking. It usually goes away. It just takes time," explained Ellie soothingly, as she ran a comforting hand through his hair.

Chuck brightened with her explanation. He reached out and grasped Ellie's hand and squeezed it encouragingly.

"Love you," said Chuck to his sister. The young doctor smiled warmly in response.

Happy that the most important women in his life were with him, Chuck turned to Sarah and said, "Love You."

Chuck reached out and clasped Sarah's hand with his free one. Sarah smiled at Chuck as a tear fell down her cheek. It was a tender moment.

However Sarah's heart stopped, when Ellie jerked her hand out of Chuck's grasp and stared at Sarah with undisguised hatred.

Sarah watched in horror as Chuck saw his sister's reaction. Looking at Ellie with puzzlement, Chuck asked, "What?"

Ellie just shook her head. But a lone tear escaped from her tear filled eyes. Chuck's eyes widened with concern. Chuck dropped Sarah's hand and reached for his sister.

"What. Tell. " implored Chuck.

Before Sarah could say anything, Ellie broke. "Oh Chuck. You can't love Sarah. She's a cold blooded killer. She threatened to kill Devon and me." The brunette started to cry.

Chuck's body tensed as Ellie's words sunk in. He turned his head and looked at Sarah imploringly. His eyes begged Sarah to tell him that Ellie was lying.

Sarah didn't respond. She just stared at Chuck helplessly. However, the look of horror in her eyes was enough of an answer.

Chuck realized that Ellie spoke the truth. His heart plummeted and he fell back against his bed. He felt his pulse explode and before he could speak, his eyes rolled into their sockets and he went into a seizure.

Ellie screamed, "Oh God, what did I do?" and started to check her brother's vitals. "Call for some help now," yelled Ellie to a paralyzed Sarah.

Sarah was stunned as she watched Chuck's body convulse. Fear gripped her. She couldn't move. A sharp cry from Ellie finally made Sarah look towards the doctor who was attempting to keep his airways clear.

"Sarah, press the button on the wall. Now!" yelled Ellie urgently.

Sarah engaged. She lunged for the emergency button and hit it with force. She watched as a group of doctors and nurses entered the room. They quickly pushed a panicked Ellie away from Chuck. A doctor began administering anti-seizure medication to Chuck as several nurses attempted to keep him from hurting himself as his body contracted erratically.

Suddenly a gigantic wave of anger coursed through Sarah. She saw red. She marched to Ellie; grabbed her by the hair and dragged her out of the room.

Sarah was furious and out of control. She slammed Ellie against the wall of the hallway.

Ellie hit the wall with a thump and fought to maintain her balance. Her scalp ached and she struggled to re-establish her footing after being manhandled out of the room.

"How could you?" screamed Sarah. "I told you he wasn't strong enough!"

So upset, Sarah struggled to take two large breaths before she continued to berate a stricken Ellie, who braced herself against the wall for support.

"You couldn't wait! It wasn't even five minutes before you started upsetting him. Don't you realize how lucky we are that he's even alive?" Sarah screamed.

Sarah grabbed Ellie shirt and shook the young doctor. Ellie was aghast at her own actions and allowed Sarah to tear into her unchallenged. Tears rained down Ellie's face as the realization that she had hurt Chuck engulfed her.

"You had to open your mouth," yelled Sarah as she gripped Ellie's shirt tighter. "I swear I am going wipe…"

Sarah stopped her tirade in mid-sentence, when she heard the first burst of gunfire.

She looked to her left and yelled, "Oh shit!" as she tackled Ellie to the ground while simultaneously reaching for her gun.

* * *

_Thanks for Sharp and Norcali for the review. All new mistakes are my own!_


	5. Admissions of Truth

A/N: Thanks to Sharp for doing a beta. All new errors are my own. Also, I only own my laptop.

**

* * *

****Chapter 5: Admissions of Truth**

**Outside Chuck Bartowski Hospital Room, Escondido, CA**

The hospital ward was in chaos. The armed Fulcrum agents had silently entered the hospital intent on covertly checking each floor for signs of a patient who could be The Intersect. Instead, all hell had broken out

They had not expected to know anyone on the Intersect's security detail. They definitely did not expect to find Sarah Walker in the midst of a heated argument in the hallway.

However, not wanting to loose an opportunity, the closest Fulcrum agent fired his gun at the blond agent.

Sarah, sensing the attack at the last second, tackled Ellie to the ground. She instinctively pushed her body between Ellie and the gunman in an attempt to protect the young doctor. At the same time, she reached for her gun. But Sarah knew her effort was futile.

The armed man had the drop on her. Sarah heard the gunshot almost at the same time as she felt an excruciating tear in her side.

The velocity of the bullet as it entered her side twisted her body mid-air and slammed her against the wall. Almost in slow motion, Sarah slid down the wall leaving an ugly red stain smeared upon the wall. Sarah fell upon Ellie, who trembled upon the ground.

Ellie yelped as Sarah's body fell upon hers. Ellie pushed up against Sarah but the agent did not respond. The young doctor struggled to move the dead weight upon her and crawl out from under Sarah's listless body who's arms and head hung listlessly.

The armed man walked up to the women on the floor. He ignored the scrambling of the people around him. Ellie stopped struggling when she saw his feet in front of her. Ellie felt fear deep in the pit of her stomach as she realized that Sarah would no longer buffer Chuck and herself against the long line of armed men, that seemed to enter their lives.

The armed man standing above Ellie was Rob Piersen. He had recognized Sarah immediately as he had walked down the hall. They had worked together on a CIA surveillance job at a state dinner once.

He was well aware of how competent of an agent Sarah was. Her presence in the hospital seemed to verify that The Intersect was close. He knew of no other CIA missions currently ongoing at the hospital. She must be here because of The Intersect.

Piersen nudged Sarah with his foot. He was technically still a CIA agent. But his loyalty was to Fulcrum and he was here to capture The Intersect at all costs.

As such, he had shot the blond agent without hesitation. Piersen was well aware of Sarah's lethalness and he needed to remove her from the situation.

Satisfied that Agent Walker was no longer a threat, he assessed the obviously terrified dark haired woman. He reached down and pocketed Sarah's gun. He then stood up and kicked the blond agent off of the young doctor. With his gun pointed aggressively, he ordered Ellie to stand up.

Ellie wiped the tears from her face and stood up slowly. She stole a quick glance at Sarah. Tears started to flow again. _Was Sarah dead_?

All her pent up hatred and dislike washed away. She started to think about all the family events they had shared. She had to believe that she had known Sarah at least a little. Ellie started to cry, but the armed agent interrupted the doctor's reverie by viciously grabbing her arm and shaking her violently.

"Where is The Intersect?" snarled the Fulcrum agent. He knew The Intersect must be close due to Walker's presence….but he didn't know where. The dark haired woman was his only lead.

Ellie's blue eyes widened in confusion and she nodded in exasperation.

"I don't know what you are talking about," cried Ellie. She looked down the hall and saw a second armed man holding his several nurses at bay. Her body trembled. It was like she was reliving The Institute.

Piersen was good at reading people and he saw the unvarnished confusion in the young doctor's eyes. He saw her look down at Sarah again.

He needed information from the brunette. He angrily asked, "How do you know Agent Walker?"

Ellie looked up at him sharply. "I don't know her."

Ellie justified her white lie by telling herself that she really didn't know the real Sarah. _Not really_. It didn't matter that Ellie had spent nearly a whole year's worth of holidays with the blond woman. It had all been a lie. Ellie wouldn't feel sorrow for the blond woman dead on the floor. She just couldn't let herself. She had to focus on protecting Chuck.

No Ellie told herself, she hadn't lied. She prayed that the armed agent believed her, even if she couldn't quite believe it herself.

Piersen furled his eyebrows. The women were in a heated fight when he had approached, but the brunette seemed genuine when she said that she didn't know Sarah Walker. Why would the women be fighting?

* * *

Casey watched The Fulcrum Agent at the nurse's station from the safety of hidden position in the stairwell. He had a partial view of the hallway and he could see a second armed man holding Ellie.

He tried not to look at Walker. She was down. He couldn't let her condition distract him. Casey's mission was to protect The Intersect. He couldn't let the loss of a partner interfere with his duty to protect Chuck.

He set his jaw aggressively. But he certainly was going to make sure both men paid dearly. He checked his gun with determination. _Yes, they were going to pay_.

* * *

Piersen scrutinized Ellie's face attempting to determine her level of truthfulness. He was confused by her behavior. He was about to threaten her again when the door behind them opened up.

A pretty nurse and an orderly hesitantly poked their heads out of the door behind them. They were arguing between themselves regarding the cause of the loud noise outside the room. The nurse and orderly blanched as they saw the blond agent unmoving on the ground. They took in the smeared blood on the wall and Piersen holding a gun on a terrified Ellie.

The pretty nurse looked at Ellie and the Fulcrum Agent noticed that they exchanged a meaningful look. They knew each other somehow.

He immediately pointed his gun at the medical personnel and motioned them back into the room. He then pushed Ellie into the room and followed her in with his gun raised. He carefully closed the door to assure that they wouldn't be interrupted.

Piersen scanned the room. He saw the young man in the bed. He smiled coldly. He motioned the nurse and orderly to stand in the corner and then turned his attention back to Ellie.

"Is that The Intersect?" He pointed at Chuck with his gun.

Ellie didn't know what the man meant; all she knew that her brother probably was involved in something big. It was no coincidence that yet another evil man with a gun was interested in her brother. She didn't know how to respond.

Seeing the agent's annoyance at her silence, she replied, "He's my brother."

The Fulcrum Agent noted the resemblance and smirked. He approached the bed. "Something tells me Agent Walker wouldn't have taken so much of an interest in you… unless your brother was The Intersect."

Ellie didn't know what to say. She stood paralyzed as she watched the man inspect Chuck. Piersen pointed his gun at her and asked, "What's wrong with him?"

Ellie hesitated, but the warning glint in the Fulcrum Agent's eyes made her answer promptly.

"He has a brain injury," replied Ellie, with regret in her voice.

Piersen grunted in disapproval. "We should have never trusted Lindermann," grumbled the Fulcrum agent.

Ellie's eyes grew wide in terror. This guy knew about the doctor. She suddenly realized that he must be with the same group of men who had attacked them in Monterey. Her stomach lurched.

She looked at her brother. He was so hurt and vulnerable. She desperately tried to think of some way to protect him. She felt powerless.

Piersen, seemingly satisfied at his perusal of Chuck, stood up straight and looked menacingly at Ellie. He walked towards her and then motioned that she should join the two frightened medical personnel in the corner.

"Nothing personal here. I just can't have any witnesses," explained Piersen in a consolatory tone.

The nurse grabbed Ellie's hand as the trio stood together waiting for Piersen to shoot. The hispanic orderly next to Ellie began to pray in Spanish under his breath. The trio stood immobile as they prepared to die.

Piersen took aim at Ellie. The young doctor braced herself for the worst. She thought about Devon and Chuck. She closed her eyes and silently wished them goodbye.

She waited for a few seconds but felt nothing.

She opened her eyes and looked quickly at her companions to see if they were okay. Their wide eyes made her turn towards the armed man.

She was startled when she saw him. His eyes bulged as he arched backwards on his knees. He had dropped his gun and he was trying to grab something in his back. Contorted in pain, he finally collapsed forward. Ellie saw a knife lodged deeply in his back.

Ellie looked beyond the prone agent and saw Sarah leaning heavily against the wall.

Not knowing what to say Ellie remarked, "I thought you were dead."

Sarah shrugged. "Not quite." Ellie was silently relieved. She didn't want to contemplate trying to protect Chuck on her own. She eyed the blond agent warily, trying to gauge the level of her injury. She had been shot. Ellie wondered how Sarah was able to function with her injury. Ellie ignored the feeling of elation she had at knowing that the armed man hadn't killed Sarah. She reminded herself that the "Sarah" before her wasn't the person she thought she knew.

Sarah pushed herself off the wall and approached the unconscious agent. "Check him for weapons, while I keep a gun on him."

The women watched as the orderly removed numerous knives from the man along with two more guns. They were aghast and the number of deadly weapons upon the man. He was a literal walking arsenal.

After the orderly was done, Sarah pocketed her confiscated gun and turned to the nurse and orderly.

"This man was going to kill you for what you saw and heard in this room. You might not think you heard much, but have no doubt…you would be killed for it."

She narrowed her eyes at the medical personnel. It was if she was looking into their souls. In her coldest voice, she continued.

"I am going to let you go. But before you leave, I need for you to understand the situation. Admitting to anyone that you were here today will get you killed. Trying to negotiate your way out of something, by admitting that you know us, will get you tortured and then killed."

"Do you understand?"

The orderly and the nurse nodded their heads in agreement, but there was a look of bewilderment in their eyes. Sarah sighed.

"I realize that you might be saying yes to me now, but deep down you're planning to go to the police later. Don't do it. This man who was going to kill you….he worked for the government as an assasin. I work for the government in the same capacity."

Sarah noted the shocked look in the medical personnel's eyes. She had to make them understand the enormity of the situation.

"What you've seen here is beyond local law enforcement. People who witness these types of things just disappear. I'm giving you a choice to not be one of them. Just forget what you've seen here and go back to your normal lives."

Sarah saw an unwanted acceptance in their eyes. She motioned for them to leave and warned them about the additional agents that were bound to be in the hospital. Once they were gone, she let her look of strength falter.

She grabbed the edge of the counter near the wall to maintain her balance. The gunshot wound in her side was sapping her strength. With a clinical regard, Sarah noticed that the blood stain on her shirt was growing in size.

Ellie watched silently as Sarah dealt with the medical personnel and noted the agent falter after they left. She was relieved to see Sarah alive but at the same time she was torn by a myriad of conflicting emotions.

Ellie didn't trust Sarah. She knew that the cold blond woman was a manipulator and capable of unthinkable things. The young doctor had personally seen Sarah kill more than a hand full of people in the last week.

But these feelings were tempered by Sarah's continued diligence in maintaining their safety. She needed Sarah to protect Chuck. Ellie knew she couldn't protect him alone.

Ellie didn't really understand what was happening around her. Ellie needed as many answers as possible if she ever hoped to protect Chuck and get their lives back. Unfortunately, the only one who could provide that was the blond agent before her. Ellie steeled herself. She needed answers from this woman but she couldn't let herself get trapped into thinking of her as the 'old Sarah.' That woman wasn't real. She couldn't be.

Trying to stay on neutral ground, Ellie asked, "Do you think they will be safe?"

Sarah shrugged as she tried to gauge Ellie's reaction to yet one more violent incident. Seeing that she seemed somewhat calm, she answered.

"Yes, as long as they deny ever seeing anything here."

Sarah couldn't read the pensive look on Ellie's face. She wanted to try to comfort Ellie somehow, but she knew that she probably couldn't. Not after everything that had transpired between them. Besides, she really didn't have time to worry about Ellie's feelings.

Sarah turned away from Ellie and began looking through the drawers in the room. She needed to find items to help in their escape and she needed something to hide the rather large and growing blood stain on her shirt.

"Sarah, why didn't you do that for me?"

Startled by the strange tone in the doctor's voice, Sarah stopped her search and considered Ellie's plea. Sarah saw the vulnerability in Ellie's eyes. She didn't know what to say. The blond agent replied, "I'm not sure I understand what you mean."

"Why didn't you give me the option to return to my normal life too?"

Her words felled Sarah. Tears accumulated in the blond agent's eyes. She had always felt an affinity towards the young doctor. Sarah knew what she was being asked. It was a difficult answer. _How could she explain to Ellie why her life as she knew it was no more?_

"Ellie, don't you think that I give almost anything in the world to let you return to your normal life?" asked Sarah imploringly.

Ellie shook her head dejectedly. The answer was hit too close to home. It made Ellie waiver in her belief that the woman before her wasn't a little bit like the Sarah she thought she knew.

"Sarah, I don't know that. I don't know that at all. After everything I have seen. I think I might be one of those people who just disappear." Ellie wiped away the moisture on her cheeks. Suddenly the truth seemed too much to bare. Ellie couldn't look at the blond agent.

"I don't want to disappear. I just want to see Devon again. Sarah, I just want to go home."

Sarah shrugged her head in despair. "You are Chuck's sister. Piersen told you that Chuck is The Intersect. The difference is that you can connect Chuck's identity with The Intersect. The other two…they couldn't make the connection."

Ellie started to cry.

"Knowing both of Chuck's identities guarantees that your life in danger. Ellie we kept you in the dark so that you could stay safe in your normal life. But it's all changed now. It has been since The Institute."

Ellie just shook her head. "Sarah, I don't understand. What has changed? And how you could know that guy?"

Attempting to answer the easier question, Sarah replied, "We worked together once. We are both CIA agents." Sarah noted the shocked look in Ellie's eyes when she admitted that she worked for the CIA.

Sarah continued, "He must have changed allegiances. There is a rogue organization inside several of the government's intelligence agencies. This entity has its own agenda. They want Chuck for their own ends."

Sarah watched Ellie begin to tremble as she begun to understand the severity of the situation. Ellie asked, "And this guy Piersen?"

"As Chuck would say, he must have gone over to the dark side," offered Sarah with a slight smile.

Ellie hugged her own torso and asked, "If things were this dangerous, why didn't you take Chuck earlier and leave?"

Sarah grimaced because she knew the young doctor wouldn't like the answer. But Sarah decided that it was best to be as truthful.

"The answer was you. Chuck wasn't ready to leave you yet. Plus he was safer outside the normal intelligence community than inside. At least he was until his identity was compromised." Sarah closed her eyes as a tremor ran through her body. Her body was weakening from her wound. She sat in a chair near Chuck's bed.

Taking a few moments to rally her strength, Sarah continued, "Chuck loves you. He just wanted a little more time with you. He would have been eventually forced to leave. He would have disappeared for your safety and for everybody else that he loves."

Ellie's eyes grew moist. She suddenly saw her life without her brother overlaid with what her life would be like without Devon. She was torn. _She didn't want to leave her brother, but how could she give up Devon? _

"But why keep me? It doesn't sound like Chuck can go back. But why can't I?"

"We are pretty sure that both your identities have been or will be compromised," replied Sarah. She looked at Ellie sorrowfully.

Ellie looked at Sarah warily. _Could she really believe Sarah?_

Sarah grimaced. This was difficult news. "Bryce Larkin isn't really dead. He is a deep cover CIA agent. He jeopardized his new identity to help us during the incident at The Institute. He was captured and is likely being tortured as we speak. In all probability, he will be broken. When that happens, Fulcrum will know Chuck's identity. Unfortunately, that means they will know yours too. They will go after you to get to Chuck."

"Bryce is alive? Oh my God, I don't know what the hell is real anymore," screamed Ellie, as she clutched her head in her arms.

"This is the stuff I shouldn't know. Why are you telling me this Sarah?-- Oh my God--my life must be over. I don't want to disappear," wailed Ellie, dejectedly.

Sarah stood up in alarm. She grimaced at the pain she felt at her quick movement. Ignoring the wobbly feeling, Sarah approached the doctor awkwardly.

"No, Ellie your life isn't over. I had to explain this to Chuck too. It's just going to be different. You asked for answers and I gave them to you. Ellie, I'm sorry I couldn't talk to you before. You were so angry. You weren't ready to hear about the reality of the situation. But you have to know that everything that I've done…it was to keep you and Chuck safe. Please believe that."

Sarah was about to attempt to hug Ellie who was visibly shaking. However a sound at the door made Sarah shift into agent mode. Sarah pushed Ellie to the side and pulled her gun. Ellie whimpered in fear at Sarah's sudden movement. She took cover near Chuck's bed.

The door exploded open and Casey rolled into the room with his gun drawn. Both agents stared at each other for a long moment before sheathing their weapons.

"Damn Walker, I thought you bought the big one in the hallway." Casey looked at the downed agent in disgust. "That was sloppy work to have left you alive."

Sarah let out a stifled laugh and straightened up painfully. "Yes, Piersen was always sloppy. But it was my gain this time. The man didn't even shoot me in the right place." Looking thoughtfully at Casey, Sarah remarked, "It took you enough time to get here."

Casey grunted. "It figures the guy was a screw up. After all, he was CIA." He smiled at the annoyed look on Sarah's face.

He then pointed down at the scrubs that he was wearing. "I had to find a pair of scrubs that fit me and take out the Fulcrum agent at the nurses' station," explained Casey.

He pointed to the red stain on Sarah's shirt. "Do you have lead in you?"

Sarah nodded negatively. "Nope, I have an entry and exit wound. It's in my side. It's a bleeder but I don't think anything major was hit. I'm a little weak but am okay for now."

Casey grunted uncommittedly. He threw a pair of scrubs at Ellie and some bandages at Sarah. "We can't have you bleeding all over the place."

Casey looked at Ellie to see if the doctor might help look at Sarah. He noted that she was purposely looking at her brother. Her body language clearly indicated that she was unwilling to help Sarah. He sighed. It was still too much for Ellie. She still couldn't let go of her hard feelings towards Sarah, even after the blond agent had save her life.

He ordered Ellie to change into the scrubs and walked over to Sarah to inspect her wounds. He wondered if Sarah had caught Ellie's slight.

"Walker, you are going to need stitches but the bandages should hold for a bit."

Sarah seemed fully engaged in applying the bandages to her wounds. Maybe she didn't see the slight.

Casey noted that Ellie relaxed a bit when he proclaimed that Sarah would be alright. Maybe things between the women weren't as bad as they appeared.

Casey finished applying the bandages on Sarah's wound and handed Ellie's discarded shirt to Sarah. "Put this on. This shirt should keep you from causing a scene in the hallway."

Once everyone was changed, Casey hid several guns under the blankets on Chuck's bed.

"It's time to get the hell out of here. We have several bad guys still roaming the hospital. Ellie and I are going to be pushing Chuck's gurney. Walker, you are going to provide cover. Are we ready people?" barked Casey.

The women nodded and Sarah hit the fire alarm lever on the wall. Sirens immediately went off throughout the hospital. Casey smiled as he looked out the door and saw that the ensuing chaos in the halls. It would provide good cover for their escape.

"It's show time people," smirked Casey. He nodded to Ellie and they pushed the gurney out of the room. He leveled a last meaningful look at Sarah before disappearing out the door.

Sarah sighed. She walked up to the unconscious body of Rob Piersen and put two bullets in his head.

She had been serious about how dangerous it was to witness the events in the room. There could be no trace back to Chuck…at least until Bryce Larkin broke.

She looked around the room one last time. She walked over to the oxygen switch near the bed and turned it on. She heard the swishing noise of pure oxygen entering the room.

She bent down and fished for something underneath Chuck's nightstand. Having found it, she pulled a small box out with a rapidly pulsing red light on it. She placed it near the hissing oxygen.

She walked back to the door and waited for Chuck's gurney to round the far corner of the hallway. Satisfied that they were safely away, she exited the door and closed it. She walked down the hallway a bit and pulled out her cell phone.

She punched in a few numbers and hit send.

Chuck's room and its door exploded in a fireball. The force of the explosion threw her against the ground. She had used the oxygen supply as an accelerant for the small bomb she had triggered in Chuck's hospital room. It had gone off with more force than she had calculated.

Sarah heard screams along the hallway as people scurried away to safety. Her side hurt. Her fall had worsened her condition. Looking down, she saw that blood has seeped onto her clean shirt. She gulped. She couldn't let herself think about the pain. She had to think positive. She had eliminated any chance that their fingerprints would be found.

She stood up shakily and tried clean the debris off her clothes. Making sure that there was no immediate threat nearby, she began walking down the hall. She needed to meet Casey at their pre-arranged rendezvous point and flank the bad guys that were sure to be there.

Sarah tried not to think about the pain in her side as she entered the stairwell. She started to climb, praying that she could keep going. Chuck needed her. She looked down at her shirt. She had lost lots of blood.

She knew it was too much blood. Ignoring the pain, she pushed herself up the stairs. The rendezvous point was going to be a huge gunfight. She had to get there. Without her help, Casey couldn't get Chuck and Ellie to safety. Fighting her body's need to stop, she pushed herself up the stairs.

Without her to flank them, they were all lost.


	6. Chap 6: Apologies and Goodbyes

**Author's note:** This has uber levels of angst. Be warned--all you angst haters out there! Thanks Sharp for Beta-ing. All new errors are my own!

**

* * *

****Chapter 6: Apologies & Goodbyes**

Casey crouched near the elevator door and checked his ammunition in his Desert Eagle for the hundredth time. Casey and his charges were cornered in a small elevator room on the roof of the hospital. Casey would periodically open the reinforced steel fire door a crack and peer out before he would have to pull back as a barrage of bullets would pelt the door violently.

'Where the hell is Walker?' thought Casey, as he took a few wild shots through the crack in the door to keep the gunmen at bay. His volley was greeted by another barrage of bullets that impacted the door with an almost a deafening ferocity. It caused Casey's ears to ring. He grunted in surprise when Casey noticed that the fire door had started to deform due to the impact of numerous rounds of high powered ammunition against it. Almost numbly, the NSA agent realized that sooner or later, the door would fail.

Dejectedly, Casey looked behind him at his charges. Chuck was laying unconscious on the gurney and Ellie was curled up on the floor with her hands over her head. The doctor was either trying to dampen the ear popping sound of the bullets hitting the steel door or she trying to convince herself that she wasn't really knee deep in another spy world gun fight. In either case, she was failing.

Casey grunted as he checked his firearm. Even with the extra ammunition that he had packed; his supply was running low due to his periodic exchange of gunfire with the Fulcrum agents on the roof. He couldn't hold their position forever. They needed to move, but their options were limited. He glanced at the empty elevator carriage.

He was tempted to use the elevator. He had turned off the elevator and now stood open, as if it was beckoning their return.

Casey sighed. He had stopped the elevator more as a means of keeping people from entering the roof than using it as an exit. He knew it was a death trap. Fulcrum agents were bound to be waiting for them if they tried to use the elevator to escape.

They were truly trapped. Both Casey and Walker had known that the roof was the most vulnerable point of their escape plan. Casey and his charges were required to traverse an open rooftop from the elevator lobby to the far corner of the building, where they had secured a private helicopter for their use in an emergency. It hadn't taken too much effort. It was amazing what sprinkling of a little money among hospital administrators could provide.

The helicopter was their only escape. But without Sarah to provide cover across the open expanse of the rooftop, the helicopter might as well have been in another country. The trio would never make it across the roof alive.

* * *

Sarah knew she was close to collapse. She had met two Fulcrum agents in the stairwell. She had taken them out, but had done it more with surprise than any skill on her part. Her body felt heavy and her vision was darkening. Her side felt like it was on fire and she felt light headed. But she couldn't let herself stop. Chuck needed her.

* * *

Casey was down to his last clip. He was about to have his charges retreat to the elevator for a final stand when he saw the stairwell door behind the armed men open. He prayed that it was Walker and not the gunmen's reinforcements. Casey held his breath as he listened to the pattern of the gunfire and type of weapon being used.

He heard two rapid shots from a Glock 23 and then there was a pause in the gunfire. Casey had to believe that Walker had taken out two of the agents. With little more than faith to guide him, Casey sprang through the fire door and rolled to his right. His shots were wild, but it got the attention of the two remaining Fulcrum agents. This would allow Walker to take a money shot.

He heard a gunshot and saw in his peripheral vision that the third agent went down. With a burst of satisfaction that his partner had his back, Casey dove to his right. In mid-air, Casey fired at the fourth gunman.

Casey smiled as he watched the fourth man collapse to the ground just as his shoulder hit the roof hard. He grunted in pain, but it didn't lessen his happiness at coming out on top in yet another round of gunplay. However, Casey's satisfaction was short-lived. As he stood up, he looked over at Walker who was still on the ground in a firing position.

Casey's smile faded as he watched Sarah struggle to turn over. Her shirt was stained a deep red and her features had taken on a ghostly white appearance. With a quickening pulse, Casey jogged over to Sarah. His stomach clenched when he saw the amount of blood on the ground and on her shirt.

Working to keep a neutral voice, Casey asked, "How bad is it?"

Sarah shrugged. They both knew the answer. She ignored his inquiry and asked, "How are Chuck and Ellie?"

Casey ignored Sarah's show of bravado and went down on his knee to inspect her wound. He couldn't see it underneath the bandages, but he knew it was bad by the amount of blood loss.

"What the hell happened, Walker? Your injury wasn't bleeding like this in Chuck's room?" barked Casey with worry.

Sarah's face contorted. "It's my fault. I was too close to the room when I blew it…I fell and I think I tore something."

Seeing her slackened face, Casey looked up over at the elevator lobby and yelled urgently, "Ellie, get out here now!"

* * *

"Ellie?" inquired Chuck weakly. He wasn't sure where he was, but his body felt so heavy and tired. He wanted to go to sleep, but something was wrong. He forced himself to listen carefully. He heard his sister crying. "Ellie, is that you?"

Ellie heard her brother's voice and wiped the tears from her cheeks. She quickly stood up and went to her brother's side. "You're awake! Chuck, I was so worried about you."

Looking at her brother, Ellie noticed that he seemed to have a difficulty focusing upon her. She moved her hands in front of Chuck's face and he reached out and tried to touch her hands.

"Everything is fuzzy Ellie. I can barely see your hand move. What's wrong with me?" asked Chuck as his voice elevated in pitch.

Chuck reached out his hand in a desperate attempt to anchor himself. He could see the outline of his sister but he couldn't make out the details of her face as she stood next to his gurney.

Sensing his distress, Ellie grabbed his hand and tried her best to calm him.

"Chuck, it's okay. You've had a head injury. These symptoms are normal. You need to calm down. You can't let yourself get upset. Last time you had a seizure."

Chuck nodded and tried his best to follow his sister's directions. Ellie quickly ran through a series of simple neurological tests on him. After she finished she tried to be encouraging.

"Chuck, you're speech has improved and your motor skills seem unaffected. That's good. I'm sure your sight will get better too."

Seeing his unbelieving face, Ellie started to run her hands through his hair and continued to put a positive spin on his condition.

After several attempts, Chuck finally acquiesced. But he still felt the need to ask her one last time, "Are you sure?"

Ellie smiled at her brother and patted his forehead. "Of course, I'm a doctor aren't I?"

Chuck responded by giving her a bright smile. His smile was bittersweet.

Privately, Ellie was much less confident of Chuck's condition. She was relieved that his speech had improved, but his loss of eyesight was very troubling. A new symptom, in this type of a situation was not a good sign. She sighed as she regarded her brother. She needed to protect him. As such, she needed to find out what was happening with their body guards.

"Let me see what's keeping Casey," remarked Ellie as she released Chuck's hand.

"Don't go Ellie," replied Chuck, who was suddenly fearful to be alone and unable to see. He tightened his hold on her hand.

"It's okay. I won't go far Chuck. I'll stay within shouting distance."

Ellie was extracting her hand from Chuck's grasp when they both heard Casey's urgent voice. Startled by the anxiety in the NSA agent's voice, Chuck released his sister's hand and Ellie hurried to the door.

* * *

Casey watched as the young doctor poked her head out of the door cautiously. She immediately saw Casey kneeling near Sarah.

Looking at Casey's face, Ellie knew immediately that Sarah was injured much more seriously than the gunshot wound she had received in the hallway.

The young doctor felt a myriad of emotions as she looked at Sarah's prone body. The blond agent had saved her life on more than one occasion. But any appreciation that she might have had for the agent, was marred by the anger she felt towards Sarah for the threats against the ones she loved.

She turned to her brother and carefully explained, "I need to go talk to Casey. You're safe here. It will only take a minute."

"No, please Ellie don't go. I'm afraid," repeated Chuck with more force.

Ellie went up to her brother and stroked his forehead. She was torn. Her brother needed her, but Sarah was seriously hurt. She knew Chuck would want her to go if he knew of Sarah's condition. But she couldn't tell him. She had promised herself that she wouldn't upset him again.

"Chuck, Sarah needs my help with something. I have to go."

Hearing Sarah's name suddenly made Chuck tense. He had been so caught up in his inability to see that he hadn't thought about her. But as he reached out mentally for her, something ominous made him shiver.

Alarmed, Chuck blurted out, "Is she hurt?"

Ellie was startled by his intuition. She didn't know what to say as she furled her brow. With more emotion in her voice than she would have liked, Ellie replied, "Honey…"

Her tone made Chuck's heart stop. He knew that voice. She had used it when their mother had left and when their father had died. It always meant something bad. Chuck suddenly couldn't breathe as his pulse pounded in his ears.

Chuck grabbed Ellie's wrist. "She is going to be okay?"

Ellie blanched at the intensity in Chuck's voice. "I'm sure she is. But I have to go check on her. Getting excited won't help Sarah and if she hears that you had another seizure because you couldn't remain calm, she will kick your butt. So stay here and try to stay calm, okay?"

Chuck nodded and told her to go. He knew by the tone of Ellie's voice that something was wrong. Chuck prayed that Sarah was all right.

Ellie took a last look at Chuck and told him that they would be right outside the door if he needed anything.

* * *

Casey was furious as he waited for Ellie. He knew the doctor had issues with Walker, but her slowness was bordering on ridiculousness. He felt the need to strangle the young doctor. Casey was about go to the elevator room and physically abscond the doctor when he saw her rush out of the elevator lobby door.

"What the hell took you so long?" bellowed Casey angrily.

Breathless from her jog across the roof, Ellie ignored Casey and quickly knelt down next to Sarah and began assessing her condition.

"Chuck woke up. I had to calm him down before I came out," replied the young doctor, as she grabbed Sarah's wrist and started to take her pulse.

Suddenly Sarah tried to get up. "Chuuuuck. I need to see him," slurred Sarah weakly.

Casey rolled his eyes in exasperation and grabbed Sarah's shoulders and pushed her down. "No you don't Walker. You're going to stay still while Ellie checks you out. You're in no shape to see Chuck."

A noise at the elevator door made Casey's attention shift and he started to reach for his gun.

The sight at the door made Casey yell, "Jesus Lord Christ!"

Both Ellie and Casey's jaws dropped as they saw Chuck standing precariously in the doorway of the elevator room. He was holding onto the wall in his hospital garb with one hand while shielding his eyes with the other.

Casey sprinted across the rooftop to Chuck, who looked like he was about to collapse at any moment. "God damn it Bartowski, what are you doing?"

"Sarah. Is she hurt?" asked Chuck, with his face contorted in pain at the brightness of the outdoor sun.

Casey was puzzled by Chuck's reaction to the light but ignored it as Chuck started to fall forward. The agent grabbed Chuck's torso to steady him.

Casey looked over at Ellie and Sarah. It was obvious that Sarah was wounded by the big red stain on her shirt. He didn't understand why Chuck didn't know that Walker was injured until he realized that Chuck was shielding his eyes with his hands.

"What's wrong with your eyes?"

"Don't know. My eyes aren't working right. I can't see. The light makes my head hurt."

Casey pursed his lips. Everything was turning into a cluster. Ignoring Chuck's request to go to Sarah, he replied, "Let's get you to the helicopter. Then I'll go get Walker so you can see your girlfriend. You guys can talk once we're airborne," replied Casey cautiously.

Without waiting for a response, Casey grabbed Chuck's torso and dragged him to the helicopter and placed him in the backseat. He told him to stay and that he would return with Ellie and Sarah.

Ellie was finishing up her inspection of Sarah when Casey returned. He motioned that he wanted to talk to her privately. Once they were far enough away from Sarah, Casey asked, "What's her condition?"

Ellie looked grave. "She needs blood and surgery to repair her side. I'm assuming you want to leave. I don't think she can. She's going to bleed out if she doesn't get medical attention soon."

She eyed the unmoving men on the roof.

Casey grabbed her arm and shook it. "They're dead. Don't worry your pretty little head about them."

Ellie's face hardened. "I'm a doctor. I have a duty…."

Casey interjected, "You have a duty to provide medical attention to us, not them. They'd sooner kill you than look at you. What I want to know is whether you're lying about Walker's condition."

Offended, Ellie replied heatedly, "Why would I lie about her condition?"

"Walker isn't your favorite person. It would be convenient way to get rid of her."

Ellie gasped. "I'm not like you people. I don't go around killing people. I would never lie about Sarah's condition to get rid of her."

Casey's eye's narrowed as he remarked sarcastically, "Yeah, tell me the thought never entered your mind."

Ellie swallowed guiltily. The thought had crossed her mind briefly. But she had rejected it almost immediately. Ellie knew she wasn't a killer, but her entry into the spy world certainly had shaken her understanding of what she was capable of.

Casey replied, "I'm not sure I believe you. But we can't leave her. She's in no condition to defend herself and besides…we owe her. We would never have made it out of the elevator room without her."

Ellie blanched. "She won't make it unless she gets blood. She can't come with us," refuted Ellie.

He pointed his finger at the dead men on the roof, "If we leave her, these guy's friends will find her and do whatever means necessary to use Walker to get to Chuck."

Ellie's eyes widened. "But what could they hope to get?"

Casey shrugged. "It wouldn't matter if there was anything to get. If we leave her, it might be more humane to…"

Ellie raised her hand to halt his explanation. She closed her eyes to calm herself before she spoke. "Just stop. I can't go there. Get her to the helicopter. At least there...she might have a chance."

Casey nodded and the doctor and the NSA agent turned to look at Sarah's prone body. Both were lost in their own thoughts as they regarded their impossible position.

Casey sighed. "Chuck will be with her in the helicopter. She'll like that."

Ellie was puzzled by Casey's comment, but before she could question him their conversation was interrupted by the noise of an incoming Medi-Evac helicopter. It was landing on the adjoining hospital roof.

Casey suddenly felt hope. He calculated how much time he had before more Fulcrum agents arrived. He realized that he didn't really have enough time to chase down the helicopter.

Resigned, he turned towards his partner to take her to the helicopter. But suddenly he realized that he just couldn't do it to her. Looking at Sarah, he decided that he would risk it all. He prayed that Sarah would do what was necessary if he didn't return.

"Can you get Sarah to the helicopter by yourself?"

Ellie nodded but was puzzled by Casey's question.

He pointed towards the incoming helicopter. "You think they have blood?"

* * *

Ellie returned to Sarah and told her the plan. The young doctor was flabbergasted when Sarah took the news stoically and then preceded to battle through her pain to stand up.

They doctor quickly grabbed Sarah's mid-section and helped the blond agent stand. Noticing Ellie's amazement, Sarah explained somewhat breathlessly, "I've been trained to ignore pain. It helps, but I can't do this for very long."

As they made their way to the helicopter, Sarah asked between labored breaths, "Is Chuck in the helicopter already?"

Ellie nodded and watched as Sarah's focus center upon the helicopter. The young doctor could feel the weakness in Sarah's body as she labored to take each step. Ellie thought that Sarah was about to collapse. However, looking at her face, Ellie saw that Sarah was steadfastly looking at the helicopter and whispering Chuck's name with each painful step. Sarah was willing herself to take each step in order to be closer to Chuck.

It felled Ellie. It was the first time since becoming aware of Sarah's governmental affiliation that the doctor actually thought that Sarah had feelings for Chuck. Ellie had assumed that Sarah's devotion to her brother was strictly professional in nature.

But as she watched Sarah struggle to get to Chuck, she realized that the woman was being driven by something more than her professionalism. With a stunning clarity, Ellie realized that in Sarah's last moments, the blond agent wanted to be with Chuck.

Casey's words finally made sense to Ellie. Sarah loved Chuck. It made her heart lurch. Ellie's eyes began to tear up as took in the tragedy playing out before her. She knew that Sarah would likely not make it off the helicopter alive.

* * *

As they approached the helicopter they heard Chuck ask, "Who's there? Sarah? Is that you?"

Ellie greeted Chuck and opened the back door of the helicopter. Sarah reached out her hand to Chuck, but was startled when he didn't respond to her. Sarah turned to Ellie and gave her a questioning look.

"Chuck's having some difficulties seeing," replied Ellie guardedly. The young doctor watched as a fleeting look of sorrow crossed Sarah's face before it was chased away by a look of resolve.

Sarah ralling her strength, turned her attention to Chuck. "I'm here."

* * *

Casey returned to helicopter on a full out run. Fulcrum agents were entering the rooftop via the stairwell. He heard several shots hit the pavement behind him.

He turned and shot at several men awkwardly. He was carrying a small ice chest and large medical bag. He hid behind an air vent and motioned to Ellie to close the helicopter doors.

Taking a deep breath, he turned the corner and shot at the Fulcrum agents before he started towards the helicopter.

Bullets buzzed by him as he took the last few steps to the helicopter and climbed in. He threw the medical bag in the back and handed the ice chest to Ellie.

"This is going to be a hot take-off," yelled Casey as he quickly started up the helicopter engines from the pilot's seat.

There was a loud bang as the front windshield of the helicopter cracked from the impact of a bullet. Casey turned the helicopter sharply to the left and yelled, "Hold on everyone!"

Ellie and Chuck leaned over Sarah in an attempt to keep her stable as the helicopter veered widely in the air.

Chuck leaned in close to Sarah and squeezed her hand reassuringly as he listened to his sister work upon Sarah. He tried to ignore the dire nature of the situation and focus his attention on the sound of Sarah's voice.

Sarah watched him with sad eyes. "Chuck, I need to tell you what you mean to me."

Chuck smiled sadly. "You don't need to tell me now. We have the rest of our lives for you to remind me." He squeezed her hand to reassure her.

Sarah smiled wanly at Chuck. She attempted to reach out with her other hand to touch his hair. But her strength failed her and her arm fell listlessly to her side.

Chuck was unaware of her gesture, but Ellie saw it. The young doctor grimaced as she prepared a unit of blood for the blond agent.

Sarah sighed as she took in his face. "That's just it Chuck, I'm not sure how much time..."

Chuck interrupted Sarah. He was not willing to hear her say goodbye.

"Sarah you once told me to trust you and I always have. I'm holding you to that. You can't leave. Ellie is going to make everything alright. Tell her Ellie," implored Chuck as he looked around helplessly for his sister to respond.

"That's right Chuck. Sarah is just tired. This IV will help her. Here hold this bag up," commanded Ellie as she handed the unit of blood to Chuck. Ellie cleaned Sarah's arm with alcohol before she jabbed the blond agent with a needle.

Sarah turned her head and looked at Ellie for a moment. Weakly, Sarah offered, "I'm sorry about Devon. I wouldn't have done it."

Chuck didn't like the tone in Sarah's voice. "Don't go apologizing on us now Sarah. We don't want apologies, I want the big bad CIA agent to keep her promise," implored Chuck, as held Sarah's head in his lap.

Ellie's heart hurt as she listened to the couple. When she finished securing the IV, she turned and saw that Sarah was watching her. Ellie realized that Sarah was waiting for her to respond to her apology. Ellie did not like that Sarah was attempting to say her apologies and her goodbyes.

Ellie responded carefully, "What, you think you're going to make a weak little apology and then leave?"

Sarah shrugged weakly and tried to smile at Ellie's attempt at humor.

Ellie shook her head. "No Sarah, you can't think that way. I need you to keep fighting. Chuck needs you to keep fighting for a while longer. We can sort out that other business later…unless you are a quitter. If you are, then maybe my brother shouldn't have trusted you."

Sarah's eyes flared angrily. Sarah started to say something, but Ellie cut her off. "You're not the only one who can piss someone off in the name of doing their job. You have to keep fighting…do you hear me? Chuck will be lost with you."

Sarah nodded almost imperceptibly before she turned her head towards Chuck. She leaned her cheek against his hand and he began kissing the top of her head gently. With a lone tear falling down her cheek, Sarah weakly mumbled Chuck's name before she let darkness overtake her.


	7. Chap 7: Confessions

**Chapter 7: Confessions**

**Eighteen Months Later **

**Pasadena, California**

_The church was decorated like a scene out of fairy tale. Bales of taffeta were hung with care along the pews and pink and white roses decorated the sides of the grand old church. _

_The ushers were dressed in gray tuxedos with long tails and crisp white ties. Outside there were groomsmen hanging cans off the back of a waiting limo and a lone groomsmen was carrying a cage of white doves into a side room within the church. _

_The wedding was on a cloudless day and the sky was a bright blue. Musicians played Pachelbel's Canon on the balcony and the church was overflowing with guests and well wishers. There was a general excitement about the pending nuptials. No one seemed to mind the lack of seating, since the general consensus was that this couple had faced adversity and won. _

* * *

**-Groom's Waiting Room –**

Devon paced around the small room nervously. His brother, Andrew, eyed him critically but remained silent. Andrew understood why Devon was so nervous, or at least he thought he did.

There were several other groomsmen in the room, but they were laughing and joking among themselves. Most ignored or were unaware of Devon's unease as they waited for the ceremony to start.

Striding in front of a full length mirror, Devon suddenly stopped and moved anxiously to the mirror. He eyed his tie critically and then decided to straighten it in an effort to assuage his nervousness.

Glancing up in the mirror, Devon saw the worried look upon Andrew's face. Feeling guilty, Devon tried to lighten his mood and gave Andrew a small grin through the mirror. The young doctor knew it wasn't right to allow his inner demons to mar the happiness of this day.

Devon snorted loudly when he thought about the ridiculousness of 'Devon Woodcomb' having inner demons. His life, up until eighteen months ago, had been nearly perfect. But then fate had thrown him the biggest curve ball of his life.

He still had nightmares about that day. Devon had received a short message from Ellie saying that she was investigating some trouble that Chuck had gotten involved in.

In true Captain Awesome fashion, Devon had absently listened to her message and deleted it, as he focused on a patient's medical records. Ellie was so overprotective of Chuck; Devon never considered that she might face real trouble. Naively, it never occurred to him that life could be less than awesome.

But to Devon's horror everything changed and suddenly everyone that he held dear was simply gone. Ellie, the love of his life, had disappeared without a trace. His happy joyous home turned into a tomb. Adding to his misery was that Chuck, Sarah and even their neighbor John had also simply vanished.

Devon had not believed it at first. Nothing bad had ever really happened to him. So Devon had waited three days before calling the police.

He spent a year regretting that decision. He had seen the rebuke in the police officer's faces. It felt like they were silently saying that he hadn't loved Ellie and his friends nearly enough. Over the course of that year without her, Devon often wondered what would have happened if he had contacted the police sooner. The thought haunted him.

* * *

**-Outside the Bride's Dressing Room-**

John Casey felt like his insides were going to melt. He hated this day and he worked hard to breathe normally. His heart was breaking.

But she needed him to be here for her today, so it didn't matter how he felt. He would do anything for her. Even if it meant being bearing witness in front of the church as she married another man. He grunted as he felt another pang of acid in his stomach.

Doing a last minute patrol of the church out of habit, Casey noticed several bridesmaids huddled outside the Bride's Dressing Room. They looked upset.

Alarmed, Casey asked, "What's going on?" He tried not to hope that she was calling off the wedding.

A blond hair woman, whose name he barely recalled from the rehearsal dinner looked up at him with the softest doe eyes he had ever seen. "She's locked herself in the dressing room. I think she's crying."

His breath hitched as he worked to control his raging emotions. Once he was satisfied that he was again under control, he began to gently push aside the bridesmaids until he was outside of the dark wooden door.

With less courage than he would have liked, he knocked.

"It's John. Is everything okay in there?"

* * *

-**Bride's Dressing Room-**

The bride sat upon the settee in the bride's dressing room and stared listlessly at the ornate stain glass window along the wall. This was supposed to be the happiest day of her life. But instead, she felt like a fraud.

She had asked for a few minutes of solitude from her bridesmaids. They had happily agreed, assuming that she was having a few pre-wedding jitters.

Once her bridesmaids had evacuated the room, she had rushed to the door and locked it. With a sigh of relief, she had collapsed upon the settee and had begun to examine her life.

She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he didn't deserve a wife like her. She was broken. _She hurt the ones she loved. _She knew that Devon would no longer love her, if he knew what she had done_. _

Her blue eyes filled with tears and she began to sob. She ignored the gentle knocks on the door until they were replaced by the pounding of a strong hand on the door.

Instinctively, Ellie knew who it was even before she heard his deep booming voice.

"It's John. Is everything okay in there?"

She cringed knowing that Casey was once again witnessing yet another low point to her life. When would her fall ever end?

* * *

**-Outside the Bride's Dressing Room-**

Casey knocked more insistently upon the door and tried to bat down the irritation he felt at his own inner voice. It told him that she wasn't his business anymore. But he just couldn't let her go quite yet. Casey told himself that it was because he still owed her for saving his life. He almost believed it too.

Turning to the bridesmaids, he told them to give him a few minutes alone with the bride. None of the women agreed until Casey stood up at his fullest height and stared at them with his most intimidating stare.

It was more than enough. The women scampered out of the hall quickly. It caused Casey to chuckle a bit. He wished that he could have gotten rid of his ex-wife as easily.

Turing around, he made a fist and pounded fiercely on the door. He made sure the room's occupant knew that he meant business.

"You open this door right now or so help me I'm going to break it down!" He kicked the door to emphasize his point; it shuddered against the frame.

He heard movement behind the door and then the clicking of the door being unlocked. The door swung open and he looked at her face. He noted the red eyes and the tear stained cheeks. He sighed.

The bride uttered painfully, "John…I can't do this."

Casey opened his arms and she fell into his embrace. He fiercely whispered into her ear.

"It's okay, Ellie. Everything will be okay."

* * *

**-Groom's Waiting Room –**

Devon remembered the night eight months ago when he returned to the apartment and had found John Casey sitting on his sofa in the dark. It had been over a year since everyone had disappeared.

Immediately, Devon had taken John as a threat.

He no longer believed in the goodness of people. A police woman had disabused him of that fact when she had told him of her suspicions that Ellie's disappearance was connected to the government and the mysterious death of Bill Tanner.

Speaking off the record in nervous, hushed tones, the woman had explained that the police had found that Devon and Ellie's apartment had been bugged by military grade surveillance equipment and that it was being maintained in John Casey's apartment next door. Devon was never told because some high level government types ordered the LAPD to cover it up.

It had shaken Devon to the core. _What had John Casey wanted with the love of his life? Why would he have bugged their apartment_? None of it made sense and it had caused him endless nightmares as he pondered numerous horrific explanations. It had eaten at Devon.

Then suddenly a year after everyone disappeared, Devon walked into his apartment and found Casey in his living room. The man's presence crystallized all of Devon's uncertainty and frustration. There could only be one explanation. With all of his pent up emotions spilling out, Devon attacked Casey screaming, "You killed her!"

Casey was startled by Devon's frenzied attack, but his training automatically kicked and he was able to deflect the doctor's fists before the younger man wrestled him to the ground.

Devon slammed his fist into Casey's spleen making Casey grunt painfully at the jab to his old wound. He couldn't help thinking of Chuck as the pain coursed through his left side.

"Ten years of studying tae kwon do, asshole. I'm going to wipe the floor with you and make you pay for what you've done to her," seethed Devon as he broke Casey's nose with a head butt.

As blood started to flow out of his nose, Casey became angry and he let himself fight without restraint. The men fought viciously, breaking furniture as they hurdled around the room intent on hurting the other.

After several blows, Casey's superior training prevailed and he was able to pin Devon in a wrestling hold.

"Knock this shit off now. I didn't kill Ellie," commanded Casey in exasperation.

Devon struggled against Casey's strong arms. "Why should I believe you," howled the doctor angrily.

Casey sighed and softened his hold as he replied, "Because I can arrange for you to see her again."

* * *

-**Bride's Dressing Room-**

Casey stared at Ellie as she sat on the settee with a forlorn look upon her face. Even with tears on her face and red swollen eyes, Casey thought she was vision.

He took a long moment to compose himself, and then asked, "What's wrong?"

Ellie frowned at him and shook her head. She was unable to talk to anyone about the guilt and self-loathing raging inside of her – least of all John Casey.

Casey gave her a slight shrug and asked, "Come on…are you really going to hold out on me after what we've been through?"

The young doctor smiled slightly before she turned and left him at the door. The agent quickly entered the room and closed the door.

"John, it's not a matter of me holding out on you. It's what I'm hiding from Devon. I can't marry him knowing that he has no idea what I've done."

Tears started to flow down Ellie's face and she tried to wipe them away. But they wouldn't stop and she finally lowered her head in defeat and just stood with her back to Casey as she cried.

Casey went to her. He was angry at her attempt at martyrdom.

"Did you do what you did maliciously?"

She had faced a decision few in the world would ever be forced to make. It angered him that she would question herself now after she was finally starting to heal. She deserved more than this…even if she didn't believe it.

Startled by his question, Ellie turned and looked at him with wide eyes. "No, John. I…I know it was a screwed up thing to do…and I'll regret it for the rest of my life."

Faltering, Ellie looked Casey in the eye and replied, "But I did it out of love."

* * *

**-Groom's Waiting Room –**

Devon's mom was attaching a white rose to his lapel when heard a knock at the groom's waiting room door.

In best man mode, Andrew went to the door and started talking animatedly with one of Ellie's bridesmaids. Sensing something was amiss; Devon watched as Andrew nodded several times and sighed heavily before closing the door.

Puzzled by the look on Andrew's face, Devon asked, "Bro—what's going on? Why the sad face?"

Sighing, Andrew went up to Devon and whispered in his ear, "He's with her again."

* * *

-**Bride's Dressing Room-**

Casey was hunched down on his knees in front of Ellie as she cried on the settee. He was handing her some Kleenex when the rectory door slammed open with a large bang.

Devon strode in with a stormy face followed by his brother Andrew. It was obvious that he was ready to fight. However, seeing his bride-to-be in tears, the blond doctor stopped in mid-stride.

He had stormed into the room in a jealous rage at John Casey's continued proximity to his Ellie. But as he entered the room, he saw that the big man was there attempting to comfort his despondent bride.

Devon's anger dissipated immediately. He sighed sadly. He had hoped that the happiness of their wedding day would ward off the bouts of depression that seemed to be a constant presence in Ellie's life since her return.

Her emotionally fragileness frightened Devon. It was so unlike the confident doctor he knew prior to her disappearance.

Devon took in the Casey's presence with irritation. He knew the hulking man had feelings for Ellie but he ignored it.

The young doctor knew he would never be allowed to know the origins of Ellie's depression due to security clearance reasons. It was apart of his fiancé's life he could never share, but he was okay with it…as long as he had her.

He tolerated Casey's presence because Ellie needed someone to talk about that time period. So he let John Casey have that part of her. He would deal with it, as long as Devon had the rest of her. It hurt him but he couldn't chance losing her again.

Devon turned to Andrew and asked, "Bro, give me a few minutes?"

His brother nodded and exited through the door after pausing to look at the trio for an extended moment. Devon couldn't help but note that there were numerous sets of curious eyes watching from the doorway.

Devon sighed in resignation. He knew that once again they would be forced to lie to their friends and family regarding what was happening in their lives. It was one more thing that had changed since Ellie's return.

"John, can I speak to my wife-to-be in private please," asked Devon.

Casey and Ellie exchanged a look that held volumes. Finally the hulking government agent stood up and distanced himself from Ellie. He moved to the far side of the room and said to Ellie, "I'll be right over here."

Devon's eyes narrowed and he felt a sudden burst of jealousy. He hated the feeling that he sometimes had to share. Incredulously, Devon began to wonder if his fiancé was finally going to leave him for the agent.

Seeing the sudden pained look in Devon's eyes, Ellie stood up and shook her head. "No, Devon, you're wrong. There's nothing between me and John," explained Ellie. Tears started to run down her face. _She knew that she would hurt the ones she loved._

Devon's eyes softened as he saw the horror in her eyes at his pain.

Ellie loved him, but she was so troubled. Devon's heart hurt for his fiancé and the terrible things that she must have faced. It haunted her. Like countless other days since her return, Devon held out his arms to comfort his bride-to-be.

Ellie immediately sailed into his arms and buried her face in his chest.

After several minutes of loud sobs, Ellie calmed down and just basked in the security of his arms. "Devon, I know we're not allowed to talk about what happened during my time away…but what I did…I am a monster."

Devon seized her shoulders and made her look at him. "Ellie, for the last time…you are not a monster!" admonished Devon. This was not the first time that he had heard this. He hated when she started with her self-loathing.

In exasperation, Devon looked at Casey who was also dismayed by Ellie's admission. Exchanging looks with Devon, Casey replied, "He's right. You did what you thought was best. No one thinks that you are a monster."

Ellie just shook her head despondently. She knew _that_ wasn't true. Her shoulders sagged and she hung her head dejectedly. Her body language clearly indicated that she didn't believe the two men.

Devon seeing that he was losing his argument grew desperate. Lowering his head so that he could look into her eyes, he declared, "You're wrong. I don't care what happened. Whatever it is, I would never love you less. I only care that you came back to me. You, Ellie Bartowski, are the love of my life. I can't live without you."

Ellie averted her eyes. "No, Devon, you don't understand. You wouldn't love me if you knew what I did….you wouldn't want to be near me. You would hate me…even more than I hate myself," cried Ellie as she pulled away from Devon's arms.

"You deserve far better than me. I'm sorry, Devon…but I can't marry you."

Devon's heart stopped. He was losing her just like he had before. But this time it was even worse. This time she still stood before him. He cried out in agony. He couldn't do it again.

Devon fell to his knees and embraced Ellie's waist with his arms. Holding his head tightly to her stomach, he cried, "Ellie, please don't…."

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks for Sharp & Brickroad for doing a beta! With those two...who could go wrong. All new errors are entirely my own!


	8. Chap 8: Aboard Tshadow's Flight

**Author's note:** This isn't my fault. I wanted to push the plot along farther before I ended this chapter. But someone cough wanted an update from me so bad he pestered and pestered me! LOL! So I stopped working on my angst challenge and have posted what I have. I've dedicated this rather small chapter to him. _Note: I told him that he was going to be sorry that he got me to post as is._

Sorry about the cliffhanger. LOL!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

**Attention TWOP Chuck fan fiction forum readers...**after TWOP kicked everyone off the Chuck fan fiction thread, the writers have moved to the forums at this site. It's very lively.

**

* * *

****Chapter 8: Aboard Tshadow's Airflight**

**Bride's Dressing Room**

**Pasadena, California**

_Devon fell to his knees and embraced Ellie's waist with his arms. Holding his head tightly to her stomach, he cried, "Ellie, please don't…." _

Ellie clutched Devon's head and sunk to her knees. She kept kissing his head and mumbling, "I'm so sorry," as she cried.

Casey watched the couple feeling like someone was using a vice to crush his chest. Breathing suddenly became difficult. He never thought her desperation could hurt so bad.

Casey turned away from the couple and looked at the small fireplace in the corner. The Bartowski siblings had given up so much to The Intersect. Even now…when it was finally over, it still kept taking pieces of their lives.

Casey thought back to that night on the helicopter…..

**Somewhere Near Escondido, CA**

"Sarah, Sarah…wake up," agonized Chuck as he vainly tried to get her to speak. He couldn't make out her features and he his heart started to pulse dangerously. He knew something bad was happening.

"Ellie…help her, please," cried Chuck, as he looked wildly around the helicopter unable to ascertain what was happening in his semi-blinded state.

"Chuck, start CPR like I taught you," ordered Ellie as she began beating upon Sarah's chest. Looking around frantically, she caught Casey's eyes as he took in the sight of Sarah's last moment.

"John, we need to get her to a hospital ASAP. She's coding."

**Bride's Dressing Room**

Casey just couldn't take seeing Ellie giving up what she wanted most in the world just to assuage her sense of guilt.

"Ellie, what's done is done. We were all forced to deal with it...even the government. It's over. You fought like hell to return to Devon. It's a damn waste to give up now," bit out Casey forcefully.

Ellie broke away from Devon's embrace and stepped towards Casey. In a dejected voice, she tried to convince Casey of the validity of her concerns.

"It's not over. I'll always be responsible. I shouldn't be allowed to forget."

Casey looked into Ellie's eyes with exasperation. "I'm not saying that you should ever forget. Hell, none of us could ever forget. But you should be able to forgive yourself."

Casey and Ellie stood motionless as they silently communicated with each through their eyes. Both seemed to telegraph their regrets over the events that had taken place. Casey was about to speak when Devon interjected heatedly.

"Stop! Just stop. I can't stand this anymore," yelled Devon.

Both Casey and Ellie turned in surprise at the emotion in Devon's voice. They had momentarily forgotten that Devon was still in the room.

"I have lived with half completed sentences and unspoken looks from the both of you for months. I can't take this anymore," explained Devon angrily.

Devon stood up angrily and pointed at Ellie in frustration. Shaking his head in contempt, he mumbled dejectedly, "Maybe you are right Ellie. Maybe we shouldn't get married."

Ellie's eyes widened in alarm and fresh tears began to accumulate in her eyes.

With a sigh, Devon continued, "I know I promised never to ask what happened. But I didn't know what that meant. Not really. I love you Ellie, but whatever this thing is…it's killing you. You need someone that you can work through this with. And that person isn't me. "

Ellie's heart stopped. She knew that this she had stopped the wedding, but hearing Devon's acceptance made it real. Suddenly she felt afraid. She knew that she was about to lose the man she loved.

A sudden desperation overtook Ellie. She had to confide in Devon. Ellie turned towards Casey and pleaded with him with her eyes. It went against the agreement that she had signed with the government. She knew that she could be imprisoned, but she didn't think it mattered if she didn't have Devon.

Casey saw the desperation in Ellie's eyes. He knew that she was going to jeopardize herself. He couldn't let that happen. He sighed.

"I guess the story starts the night that 'Sarah Walker' died."


	9. Chapter 9: 29 Palms

**Chapter 9: Twenty-Nine Palms**

**Bride's Dressing Room, ****Pasadena, California**

_Story summary to date..._

_Casey, Ellie and Devon were in the Bride's Dressing Room. The room was full of tension. Ellie desperately tries to tell Devon that she cannot marry him because she is unworthy of his love or any future happiness due to her actions during her year absence._

_Devon was aware of his fiancé emotional distress from this time period. But it finally dawns on him that after six months home, her emotional distress cannot be solved without her being able to talk about this mysterious time period._

_The young doctor realized that Ellie needed someone who could help her get past the events that were haunting her. Unfortunately, the government's insistence on secrecy prevented Devon from being that person. So reluctantly, Devon agreed with Ellie that maybe they shouldn't get married._

_Ellie was devastated by Devon's agreement. However, caught up in feelings of unworthiness, Ellie was unable to fight for her future with Devon. _

_Being able to see the situation for rationally, Casey recognized that Ellie didn't deserve to lose Devon. In a last ditch effort to save the wedding, Casey decided to tell Devon about the tragic events that haunt Ellie in the hopes that he can save the wedding and more importantly, help Ellie heal from the emotional wounds she carries from the events that occurred in the past. _

_Casey knew Ellie couldn't tell the story herself. She was emotional beyond the ability to talk about what happened and she also had signed numerous documents detailing what would happened to her if she spoke about the events that had occurred._

_He had to tell the story for her sake. She deserved at least that. _

* * *

"I guess the story starts the night that 'Sarah Walker' died."

Casey sighed with exasperation at Devon's reaction. He tried to explain.

"Devon, what I'm about to tell you cannot be repeated. I could lose my job for this. Hell, I could go to prison for telling you this story," he muttered absently as he looked around the bride's dressing room.

Ellie stared in shock at Casey's words. She never thought Casey, the consummate professional, would ever share the ugly events of that time period. But realizing that Casey was going to continue, Ellie tensed up and closed her eyes, as if she was trying to shield herself from remembering where it all began.

Devon's eyes widened and he looked questioningly at his fiancé and then back at Casey. He steeled himself for a story he knew had affected Ellie greatly.

Casey looked at Ellie still debating with himself on whether to share the story. He saw her tear-streaked face. It was a face he had watched change slowly over the past eighteen months. It now carried a weight of all the untold events and personal choices that she made during her time away from Devon.

Casey knew that her story needed to be told. Devon needed to know the choices that Ellie had been forced to make and the guilt that she carried. Knowing this information, Casey hoped that Devon could help Ellie forgive herself so that she could eventually find some happiness.

Knowing how much shock his next words were going to cause, the NSA agent turned to Devon and stared at him intently for a moment. He hoped the man could handle what he was about to tell him.

* * *

**Outside of 29 Palms, California, Eighteen months earlier. **

Casey was at the control of the Bell 407 helicopter. He was pushing it to its limits as he maneuvered the helicopter towards the Marine Base in the small town of 29 Palms.

He was frantically barking into the radio, "Marine Air Ground Task Force Command, this is a civilian helicopter with government personnel aboard. Access authorization is niner-delta-four-gamma. We are in-bound with a medical emergency. Please respond!"

Ellie listened in exasperation. Sarah wasn't going to make it much longer.

"Casey, we need to land at the closest hospital. We can't go flying to some military base in the middle of no where," yelled Ellie to Casey over the noise of the helicopter engine.

The doctor's attention was diverted when Chuck's body suddenly constricted and his eyes glazed over. Chuck grabbed his head started to cry in pain.

Ellie quickly grabbed Sarah's IV that her brother had dropped and hung it on the wall. She leaned over Sarah and tried to determine what was wrong with Chuck who was withering in pain.

"What is it, Chuck? Talk to me," implored Ellie urgently.

Ellie watched as her brother's body suddenly relaxed and his head fell back upon the seat of the helicopter.

After a few seconds Chuck groaned, "29 Palms is a small town 65 miles east of Palm Springs. It is the location of Marine Air Ground Command and is the home of Robert Bush Naval Hospital."

Shocked by Chuck's sudden knowledge after his strange outburst, Ellie replied, "What happened to you Chuck and what are you talking about?"

Chuck slumped over and grabbed his sister's hand as he looked around woozily. He used his other hand to rub his temple. Chuck replied despondently, "Casey's flying to the naval hospital at the 29 Palms Marine Base. Ellie, my head hurts."

Ellie looked at her brother in bafflement. "When did you learn about the hospital at the military base?"

Chuck didn't respond, but continued to massage his head. Believing that he wasn't going to reply, Ellie squeezed his hand to prompt a response. Chuck sighed and looked at her sadly. "It's my head. It's why I'm in so much trouble Ellie."

Ellie furled her brow in puzzlement. "What? Why are you in trouble and how does your head have anything to do with what you are caught up in? How did you know…"

Casey interrupted the siblings by yelling angrily. "Chuck, you know the rules! Don't say another word - and that is an order!"

Ellie watched her brother wince at Casey's reprimand. She realized that Chuck had been forced to hide things from her.

Her blood began to boil and all her protective instincts started to rise. "Damn you, Casey. You have no right to tell my brother what to do," snarled Ellie as she squeezed Chuck's hand.

"No Ellie, you don't know what you are talking about. But I can't talk you about this right now!" yelled Casey. "I'm pushing this toy copter to its limits and we're going to have to fly through some tough Santa Ana winds during our descent. It's going to be a rough ride and I can't talk to you about this right now."

"Get Sarah ready for transport once we're down. We'll talk about this later."

Ellie was about to fight back but the helicopter suddenly lurched as a strong Santa Ana wind swept them to the left.

Both Ellie and Chuck were knocked around the cabin as it moved erratically. Noticing that Chuck was frantically trying right himself, Ellie grabbed Chuck's hand and placed them on the handholds. She then grabbed Sarah's IV that had fallen down and secured it the best she could. The helicopter continued to rock crazily as they descended through the gusseting winds.

Noticing that Sarah's unconscious body was being thrown about, Ellie leaned her body over Sarah in attempt to secure the unconscious agent. The helicopter continued to jostle wildly and Ellie was forced to abandon all other thoughts as she focused upon keeping Sarah and herself from being thrown about the cabin.

With great sense of relief, Ellie finally heard Casey yell.

"Hold on! It's going to be a hard landing!" With a bone thumping smack they hit the ground and Ellie sighed with relief.

Chuck let out a groan from the impact. Ellie looked up and shook her head to clear it. Somewhat recovered from the hard landing, she immediately checked on Sarah's condition. Not seeing anything readily visible, she knew that the jarring could not have helped the situation. Ellie yelled, "Damn it Casey Sarah's body can't take a jolt like that. We need that medical help you promised ASAP!"

Casey grunted in acknowledgement. He landed on the helipad of the naval hospital. Looking about, he spied a naval medical team approaching the helicopter. They were dressed in hospital garb but their hair cuts were a clear giveaway that they were military. They jogged towards the helicopter pushing a gurney. Mission Control must have notified them of their arrival.

"A medical team is approaching with a gurney. Get her ready to move," ordered Casey as he started shutting down the engines to the helicopter.

* * *

The doors to the helicopter opened and the three medical personnel stopped abruptly in shock at the bloody sight before them.

Sarah lay on the floor of the helicopter with her torso covered in blood soaked bandages. The front of Ellie's shirt was also covered in blood where she had leaned across Sarah. Chuck was also covered in blood as he sat in the pool of blood that had congealed around Sarah on the floor.

Ellie immediately took control of the new medical personnel. "Get it together people. We have a gunshot victim with probable damage to a major organ. I can't stop her bleeding and I've already given her three units of blood. We need to get her into surgery now!"

Hearing Ellie's voice commands prompted the trio of naval personnel to act. They quickly acknowledged her commands with several "Yes Ma'ams" and the trio quickly helped Ellie remove Sarah from the helicopter and rushed the CIA agent into the hospital.

Casey came around the helicopter and watched as Ellie and her band of medical personnel rushed into the entrance of the hospital.

The NSA agent sighed. There was nothing else that he could do for Sarah. He turned his attention to Chuck and walked to the open doors of the helicopter cabin. He peered into the helicopter to check on Chuck.

The sight of the abandoned cabin tilted the NSA agent's world. Casey had to grab the side of the helicopter for support. Casey's eyes grew wide as he took in the large stain of purplish red on the floor of the cabin and Chuck attempts to avoid it. It took up the majority of the floor and swipes of red were evident on the seats and handrails where Chuck or Ellie had touched their hands.

Casey hadn't realized that Sarah had lost so much blood.

The dark stain reminded him how very close they were to losing her. He watched Chuck feverishly trying to wipe the blood his hands with a desperate look upon his face.

Concerned by Chuck's expression, Casey asked, "Chuck?"

"It's her blood isn't it?" cried Chuck mindlessly as he wiped his hands on the seat.

Casey was confused. He didn't understand the question until it dawned on him.

"Can you see anything at all?"

Chuck stopped his actions and looked up at Casey.

"Not much," replied Chuck quietly.

Casey sighed and reached his hand out and gently touched Chuck's shoulder. Chuck instinctively clutched Casey's arm.

"Come on. Let's get you cleaned up," urged Casey.

As he helped clean Chuck's hands, Casey realized how important protecting Chuck and his sister were to him. For the first time in a long time Casey felt something for the people around him.

He cared for Chuck and his family as well as his partner. He hadn't ever really had a partner since he had been a spy. He hadn't trusted anyone enough before to call them his partner. But he trusted Sarah. She was his partner and he knew they were stronger together.

This assignment was just too different from anything he had experienced before. He no longer was tasked to just protect The Intersect. He was also tasked to protect the man and that worried him. He didn't trust himself to keep Chuck and Ellie safe physically and emotionally by himself. He needed Sarah's ability to connect to Chuck emotionally, if only to keep the young man sane.

Taking one last look in the cabin before he closed the door, the dark stain reminded him how very close they were to losing her; and by association him.

* * *

**Robert Bush Hospital Operating Room, 29 Palms, CA**

Ellie was surprised when she was allowed to scrub in on Sarah's surgery. Casey had informed her that she would be assisting in the procedure. It wasn't normal for a hospital to allow an 'unknown' person to assist in their operating room, but she had learned that her brother's keepers seemed to be able to cut through red tape.

It shocked Ellie that she was alone in the operating room with a surgeon and an anesthesiologist. There were no nurses in the room. This was even more non standard, but she knew that it was the wrong time to ask questions.

Ellie would have balked at the reduced staff, but the surgeon was very good. She tried to make conversation while they surgery was taking place by asking the surgeon where he had done his residency. However she was quietly rebuffed when he replied stiffly that he had done his residency at the front lines of Iraq.

After Ellie's initial attempt at conversation, the surgery was done in virtual silence.

The surgeon and the anesthesiologist communicated with terse, precise sentences. There was no small talk, but Ellie could tell that the duo had spent a considerable amount of time together in the surgical room.

As the surgeon completed his final stitches, Ellie felt a great wave of relief wash over her.

She was fairly confident that Sarah was going to make it.

It made her feel so much better to know that they had saved Sarah. Regardless of Ellie's personal feelings towards the woman, her brother needed the blond agent.

No longer caring about their earlier rebuff, Ellie brightly remarked, "Gentlemen, thank you for doing such a good job. I'll need to tell my patient the names of the men who saved her life."

The doctors looked up at her in puzzlement. They looked at each other and then back at her in dismay.

Before they could reply, a voice came across the PA system that connected the operating room to the viewing area above.

"Is the surgery over," inquired John Casey.

"Yes sir," replied both doctors quickly. They both looked up at the man behind the viewing window.

"Then I can assume that she is out of the woods?"

The surgeon looked at each other nervously before the surgeon replied, "As well as someone who is coming out of a major surgery to repair a gunshot wound could be expected, sir."

"That was a guarded reply soldier," replied Casey aggressively.

"Yes Sir," replied the surgeon loudly.

Casey paused for a moment to consider the reply. Ellie watched in puzzlement at the exchange.

"Now I want you to call it," ordered Casey with command in his voice.

Ellie was even more perplexed by his order. She didn't understand what Casey meant but was surprised when the surgeon sighed and turned to his left. He flipped a switch on the operating room voice recorder.

"It's 11:15 pm and the female gunshot wound patient air transported to the hospital has died. Nurse what was her name?"

The surgeon looked at Ellie.

Ellie's eyes grew big as she looked down at the blond figure before her. She looked up at Casey who nodded.

"Her name…was…Sarah…Walker," replied Ellie in shock.

The doctor swiftly continued, "Time of death was approximately 11:15pm."

* * *

Author's note: Thanks to Sharp for the Beta! Any new errors are my own!

Also, I tried explaining Twenty-Nine Palms in the story. It is a real city and is the location of the biggest marine base in the US (at least according to Wikipedia). I realize most readers are not from southern California and so I tried to provide explanations on any geographical references I used. I hope you all are enjoying!


	10. Chapter 10: Attachments

* * *

Author's Note: Thanks to Bill and Tshadow for the beta. All new errors are my own.

TWOP readers: The fanfic writers are now meeting on the forums at this website.

Disclaimer: I still do not own anything... except my computer and my two pugs.

* * *

**Chapter 10: Attachments**

**Bride's Dressing Room**

**Pasadena, California**

Devon looked incredulously at Casey and his fiancé as they calmly told him that Sarah had been declared dead when she had made it through surgery. It didn't make sense to the straightforward doctor.

Suddenly a thought occurred to Devon. He grabbed Ellie's arm and asked, "Did you deceive Chuck into thinking that Sarah was dead?"

Casey shook his head in disgust. "No, dumb ass. As if Sarah Walker would allow that. Bad guys who will remain nameless for this conversation were after Chuck and Sarah had been recognized. Sarah's cover identity couldn't be allowed to live."

Devon looked imploringly at Ellie who seemed to have shrunk at his question. He turned towards her and rubbed his thumb against her wrist. "I'm sorry I accused you of deceiving Chuck. It's just that you said you felt guilty and I jumped to conclusions."

Ellie looked sadly at Devon. "I suppose it makes sense. At the time I didn't like Sarah. I was still upset because she had threatened your life," explained Ellie as she squeezed Devon's hand.

Devon face turned to puzzlement. He looked incredulously at Ellie and then at Casey. "Why would Sarah threaten me?"

Ellie shrugged helplessly and pulled her arm from his grasp. She went to the window and looked out pensively.

"Sarah told me that she and Casey were government agents assigned to protect Chuck. We were obviously in danger, but I didn't believe I could trust her. I didn't follow orders and put all our lives in jeopardy. She forced me to comply by threatening your life."

Devon walked over to Ellie and tried to comfort her. "Sarah wouldn't have hurt me. She couldn't hurt anyone. Besides, I have a black belt. You know me Ellie…I can protect myself."

Casey coughed loudly in attempt to stifle his amusement. Ellie turned to Devon and smiled at him.

"During the first few days of my disappearance, I saw Sarah kill numerous men in cold blood. They were military trained combat men. Sarah's amazing actually. You need to understand Devon that Sarah was a government trained assassin sent to protect Chuck. She was capable of …"

Casey interrupted Ellie. With a warning tone in his voice, Casey replied, "Let's just agree that Sarah is a highly capable agent who was intent on assuring Chuck's safety."

The NSA agent gave Ellie a warning look. The young doctor didn't need to tell Devon about Sarah's threats or the number of Fulcrum agents that she had killed. Casey still had a duty to protect some secrets.

Ellie grimaced when she saw Casey's annoyed look. She sighed in resignation, but continued her explanation. "Bad men kept coming after us because of Chuck. Sarah and the injured Casey kept being forced to fight. I owe my life to Sarah and Casey. They saved me. She saved me."

Ellie turned her back on the men and returned to looking out the window aimlessly. She regretted so much.

"I hated Sarah and even Casey for the situation, but I realized that Chuck needed them for protection. Everything we knew about Chuck and Sarah was for show. I wasn't sure what my brother felt for Sarah," sighed Ellie.

Ellie spun around quickly and added, "But then I saw how Chuck treated her. I realized that his feelings weren't just a cover. He had truly fallen for Sarah. I hated that. I thought it was one sided. I thought Sarah was using his feelings to manipulate him."

She looked imploringly at Devon and Casey. She wanted to make them understand. "For awhile…I would have done anything to get Chuck away from Sarah."

Devon stared at the broken figure in front of the window. "No one would have blamed you if you tried to break them apart. I mean Chuck in love with an assassin. That's a little hard to accept," remarked Devon cautiously.

Ellie's eyes darted to Devon. She shook her head negatively. "You misunderstand. I wasn't happy about their relationship. But there were bigger things than me trying to break them apart."

Devon's eyebrows furled in puzzlement. "I don't understand."

Casey put his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "Chuck was still an important government asset who was injured. The government needed him to function as The Intersect again as soon as possible."

"And Sarah?" asked Devon, suddenly alarmed.

The NSA agent smirked. "Well she was just an injured agent. She was dispensable."

Devon's eyes grew large in alarm. "Did they…. kill her," asked Devon in exasperation.

* * *

**Conference Room, Robert Bush Naval Hospital, Twenty-Nine Palms, CA**

Ellie and Casey stood in front of the video screen talking to General Beckman and Director Graham. She was nervous and intimidated by the authority emanating from the figures on the screen. She also noted how deferential Casey was being to the General and the Director. She recognized that these people wielded significant power.

"So Dr. Bartowski do you think that you can provide primary medical care to your brother? That is, if you are allowed to video consult with specialists who are more familiar with his other abilities?" inquired General Beckman.

Ellie gulped. She was shocked that the government would want to entrust her with Chuck's care; since he seemed to be so important to them.

"Of course I can, General. I have taken care of Chuck my entire life. But I have to ask…. why would you entrust me as an intermediary? Wouldn't it be better for the specialists to examine Chuck directly," inquired Ellie warily.

Beckman's eyes narrowed as she considered the young doctor. She recognized that the doctor was astute. "In normal circumstance you would be correct. But Chuck's security is an issue. You have already seen what organizations will do to capture him. We have had several security lapses with medical personnel assigned to examine Chuck already. The Monterey incident is a prime example."

Ellie flinched upon hearing the general reference to what had happened at The Institute. The general noted her reaction and continued more confidently, "It is best to only allow medical personnel near him that can be trusted to hide his identity Dr. Bartowski. We assume that you can be trusted."

Ellie responded instantly. "Of course I can. I would protect Chuck with my life," replied Ellie.

General Beckman's eyed Ellie for a long moment. "Let us hope that it doesn't come to that," noted the General in an ominous tone.

Seeming satisfied with her conversation with Ellie, the general turned to Casey.

"We have sent a Lear Jet to transport you and the Bartowskis to your new safe house. I am sending you the details now."

Casey nodded when he saw the secured email arrive on his laptop. "I just received it. What identities shall they be using?"

"Ellie will now be Eleanor Carmichael, the sister to Charles Carmichael," replied Director Graham.

"…and Agent Walker's new identity?" asked Casey cautiously.

Director Graham grimaced and interrupted the general before she could reply.

"Walker has done a good job. But she will be rolled off this assignment so that she can recuperate. Her assignment with the Intersect…er…Chuck is over."

Ellie's eyes grew wide and she looked at Casey and then back to the screen. She saw that Casey's body had tensed and his hands clenched into fists.

"Chuck has a strong attachment to Agent Walker. Her presence would likely help in his recovery," explained Casey warily. Ellie noted that there seemed to be some type of undercurrent that she didn't understand.

General Beckman replied tersely, "Agent Walker has been severely injured. She would add considerable complication to the logistics of moving Chuck. While we are aware of Chuck's attachment to her, our first priority is his security. We need you, Agent Casey, to focus on Chuck safety and not towards other personnel assigned to this mission."

Ellie watched as Graham gave the general an exasperated look, but then he schooled his reaction. The director turned towards Casey and explained, "Agent Walker will be more comfortable if she recovers at home."

Casey noted that the general and director seemed to have had differing opinions on the matter. But it seemed that the general had won. Walker's status on this assignment had already been decided.

The NSA agent knew there was no reason to continue this conversation. After all, orders were orders. Casey nodded his understanding, "Yes Ma'am."

* * *

**Hospital Room, Robert Bush Naval Hospital, Twenty-Nine Palms, CA**

Sarah awoke to a bright light and a scratchy throat. Her head felt like cotton and she struggled to right her senses. She heard a faint noise to her right and she shifted her head to investigate. She saw the top of a brown curly mop of hair leaning against her hospital bed. Her heart smiled at the sight of Chuck.

Chuck was half sitting in a chair at the side of her bed. He had propped his torso against her bed and had laid his head on the top of her mattress facing away from her. The noise she heard was Chuck gently snoring as he slept in the awkward position.

Sarah felt incredibly tired but the sight of him called to her. She needed to touch him; to make sure that he was real. She reached out and slowly drew her hand to his head. She lightly ran her fingers through his mop of hair. It made her lips upturn slightly as she felt the tendrils of his hair slide between her fingers. Her heart twitched as she felt his head lean automatically into her touch as he slept.

"Ch…Chu..ck…" whispered Sarah with a weak voice. But he didn't stir. With a bit more strength, Sarah called to him again and gently pulled upon his hair.

Chuck awoke sleepily. He took a deep breath and lifted up his head, stretching his neck and shoulders. He opened his eyes and gazed aimlessly around him. His eye sight still only allowed him to see general colors and shapes. He was about to sigh in frustration when he saw movement in front of him as Sarah's arm moved.

"Sarah?" asked Chuck with sudden excitement.

"Chu...ck," croaked Sarah again with difficulty.

Chuck grabbed the arm that had been moving and stood up quickly. He turned towards her. He could see the outline of her face as she laid upon the bed.

"Oh my god Sarah, I've been so worried about you. When you lost consciousness in the helicopter…I thought…I thought…Oh my god, I am so grateful that you're awake," cried Chuck as he bent down and kissed her hand.

"Water," cried Sarah with a scratchy voice.

Chuck immediately stood up. "I'm probably not the one that should do this for you," replied Chuck as he started grasping out with his hands towards the table behind him. He found the pitcher of water and a plastic glass by rapidly feeling the objects on the table. With difficulty he filled her cup and carefully turned it towards her with a straw.

Sarah watched with wide eyes as Chuck offered her the cup. She realized that his movements were like those of a blind man. Sarah immediately wanted to ask him all kinds of questions, but knew that her throat was too dry.

With urgency, Sarah grabbed the straw from one of his hands and placed it in the cup. She dragged his other arm towards her and held his hand as she drank the soothing water.

After she had washed away the scratchy dryness in her throat, Sarah turned towards Chuck and asked, "What's wrong with your eyesight?"

Chuck shrugged and gave her a slight smile. "Ellie says that it's nothing to worry about. It sometimes happens to patients with head trauma," explained Chuck as he turned away from her and carefully placed the cup on the table. He turned back towards her and gave Sarah a bright smile. "It's your health that we all are worried about, Miss Walker." He reached out and fumbled along the mattress until he found her hand. He gently squeezed it.

Sarah gazed up at Chuck with love and concern. She was so relieved that he was here with her but at the same time she was alarmed by his eyesight. She didn't know what to say. Looking up at him, she did the only thing that she could think of.

She reached up to his shirt and pulled him down towards her. Chuck allowed her to pull him down until his face was close to hers. Looking into his face lovingly, Sarah commanded, "Kiss me."

Chuck's lopsided smile disappeared and he reached out to her face. He cupped her chin and leaned in and brushed his lips over hers gently.

After a long but gentle kiss, Chuck started to pull away from Sarah. But she was not satisfied with his chaste kiss. She caught his lower lip with her teeth to stop him from moving away. She reached up and grabbed his collar and pulled him closer to her and hungrily kissed him.

Chuck was thrown off balance by her aggression and had to plant his hands on both sides of her head to regain his footing. He chuckled before allowing himself to be swept into Sarah's deeper kiss.

Their kiss spoke volumes. Sarah cupped his chin with her hands and they kissed feverously. They communicated their worry about each other through their kiss.

They were both so consumed by their need for each other that neither heard the door to Sarah's hospital room open. It took several seconds for either of them to become aware of the repeated coughs that were coming from the end of her bed.

Finally Casey growled, "Will you two give it up already?"

Chuck tried to immediately pull away from her, but Sarah held her embrace. She needed to warn him about what was about to occur. Sarah looked pleadingly into his eyes but saw the blankness within them. She sighed realizing that she was not going to be able to silently communicate with him. She released her hold upon him.

Chuck pulled out of Sarah's arms and stood up straight and looked warily at the visitors at the end of Sarah's bed. He could only see the rough shapes of Casey and his sister but felt uneasy. Sarah sensed Chuck's discomfort and grabbed his hand and squeezed it encouragingly.

"Walker you must be feeling better if you can play kissey face with your boy toy," barked Casey harshly.

Chuck's face darkened with the need to protect Sarah. Chuck was about to retort angrily when Ellie interjected in an attempt to calm the rapidly escalating situation.

"Sarah, how do you feel?" The doctor moved to the opposite side of the Sarah's bed and grabbed her wrist to check her vitals. The tension in the room immediately dissipated as they all focused upon Sarah's condition.

"Sore. But I'm doing okay," replied Sarah cautiously. She noticed that Ellie and Casey exchanged glances. Sarah recognized that their silent communication was not a good sign.

"Where are we?" inquired Sarah warily.

Chuck replied automatically. "We're at a naval hospital at Twenty-Nine Palms. We had to emergency land the helicopter because your condition was critical, "explained Chuck. "But you are okay now, right Ellie?"

Ellie pursed her lips and released Sarah's arm. "Yes, Sarah will eventually make a full recovery. But you will be weak for a long time," explained Ellie sheepishly.

Sarah looked to Casey and then at Ellie. Her partner wore a poker face but she could clearly see the guilty look upon the young doctor's face. Sarah needed to talk to Casey privately.

"Chuck, I'm starving. Do you think you could find a nurse down the hall and arrange for someone to bring me something to eat," inquired Sarah.

Chuck turned towards Sarah and smiled broadly at her. "I would do anything for you."

Ellie offered to help Chuck find the nurse. The young doctor knew that the agents needed to talk privately and guessed that Sarah had intentionally sent Chuck out of the room.

Once the Bartowski siblings had safely left the room, Sarah allowed herself to look tiredly at Casey.

"I'm not doing that badly, Casey. I'm sure I will be able to get out of bed in a day," replied Sarah with an almost a pleading tone in her voice.

Casey grunted sarcastically. "Get real Walker. You almost died. You'll be lucky to be out of bed in a week. You are going to be weak for a long time. Your chest is one big pin cushion."

Sarah gulped as she recognized the ramifications. She suddenly felt very afraid. She leaned her head back into her pillow and turned her head as a lone tear fell down her cheek. She quickly brushed it away.

"Casey, I swear I will walk down the hall tomorrow…."

Casey interjected forcefully, "Walker, it's not my call. Do you really think I want to have a despondent Bartowski on my hands?" seethed Casey angrily.

Sarah saw that Casey was not happy with the situation. Fear gripped her heart. Her partner had already received the order that terrified her.

"Did…did they…"

"Yes Walker, you are being sent home to recover."

Sarah's eyes widened in anguish and they quickly pooled with tears. Her time with Chuck was officially at an end. She felt a sudden swell of desperation.

"Let me talk to them Casey. I can make them understand that he needs me…."

Casey slumped his shoulders in resignation. "You think I didn't try to explain that Chuck needs you? They just don't care about Chuck _the person._ They are only focused on getting The Intersect to safety."

Sarah shook her head refusing to accept that Chuck was being taken from her. They had fought too hard; given too much to have it end this way.

"Chuck needs me…and I need him. You know this Casey. Please don't let them take him from me," cried Sarah with tears openly falling down her face.

"Please Casey you have to help us."


	11. Chapter 11: Star Crossed

_**Author's note**__: Sorry this has taken so long to post. I had some writer's block, an international work trip and a wedding! Ugh._

_Anyway, I wrote myself into a corner which required me to change my plot some. Sorry if this chapter is kind of angst ridden… even for me. I promise good things are coming in the next chapter. (Note: I almost never give spoilers…so my guilt level must be pretty high!) _

_BTW, if you are interested in chatting with the authors or just stopping by to say, 'Hi"…a good number of the Chuck fanfic authors hang at: _

_**Fanfiction/forum/TWoPKickedUsOutButWeStillLoveChuck/49974/**_

_I would love to see you there!_

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own _Chuck_.

* * *

**Chapter 11: Star Crossed **

**Bride's Dressing Room**

**Pasadena, California**

_Casey, Devon and Ellie were in the Bride's Dressing Room discussing the events that haunted Ellie. The room was full of tension as they discussed the events that occurred during the eighteen months that she had disappeared and were now jeopardizing the young doctors' nuptials._

"So the government didn't kill Sarah?" asked a confused Devon, as he looked back and forth between Ellie and the NSA agent.

Casey rolled his eyes and huffed, "Of course not moron. Dispensable doesn't mean we kill them. Hell, if that was the case then you…"

"Stop! Stop it now," interjected Ellie, as she gave Casey a pointed look. Seeing Ellie's facial expression made the NSA agent sigh in resignation. Casey realized that she didn't appreciate him mocking her fiancé.

He ignored Ellie as she tried to placate Devon. Instead, Casey thought back over the events that transpired at Twenty-Nine Palms.

Fighting back a feeling of nostalgia, Casey chocked out a small laugh and shook his head. "To this day I'm not sure how they pulled it off. Maybe it was divine intervention."

He leveled a shrewd look at Ellie and considered her for a moment. Narrowing his eyes, he remarked, "Or maybe it was intervention by something more earthly in nature." Casey leveled a meaningful stare at the brunette doctor.

"Ellie, do you want to confess anything?" asked Casey in the voice he normally reserved to intimidate people.

The brunette quickly averted her eyes. Ellie hadn't realized that Casey had suspected her involvement. Her stomach lurched in alarm when she realized that the government might also be aware of her involvement.

Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, Ellie guiltily replied, "Casey, let me explain…."

* * *

**Hospital Room, Robert Bush Naval Hospital, Twenty-Nine Palms, CA **

_The two agents were alone in Sarah's hospital room. They were heatedly discussing Casey's orders to leave Sarah and take the Bartowski siblings to a safe house at an undisclosed location. _

"…Please Casey you have to help us. You can't leave me," cried Sarah desperately as she clutched her hospital blanket tightly against her.

Casey looked down at the desperate figure of Sarah Walker as she struggled to sit up in her hospital bed. He knew that Chuck and Sarah had strong feelings for each other and it wasn't that he didn't feel for the couple. But he was a company man and he had his orders. He couldn't disobey.

"I'm sorry Sarah. Beckman has already issued her orders," said Casey.

Casey watched Sarah's reaction. It was clear from her stricken face that she was struggling to maintain her composure. She was started to argue, but the Bartowski siblings re-entered the room. Frustrated by the interruption, Sarah gave a strangled cry.

Alarmed, Chuck awkwardly launched himself towards Sarah's bed but was hampered by his limited sight.

"Sarah, are you alright?" asked Chuck with concern, as he felt his way towards her hospital bed.

Sarah grabbed his outstretched arm and pulled him towards her until he was forced to lean down onto her bed. Overwhelmed by Casey's admission, Sarah cried, "He is going to take you away from me. He is going to separate us."

Chuck embraced her gingerly making sure that he did not touch her injured torso. He whispered something unintelligible in her ear and then looked up.

Casey saw that Chuck couldn't quite focus upon him but there was a glint in his eyes that he had never seen before. There was almost fierceness in Chuck. It made Casey hitch his breath.

The small noise centered Chuck gaze upon Casey. Chuck expression was hard and he snarled, "You can't separate us, Casey. I won't let you."

The NSA agent exhaled slowly. He knew how stubborn Chuck could be; and based upon his expression it was clear that Chuck would fight to the bitter end to stay with Sarah.

Casey felt a slow burn in his stomach. He cared about Chuck and Sarah. But his personal feelings didn't matter. He would do his job.

Clenching his jaw, he felt a surge of anger at the ridiculous position that he was in. Casey stood up rigidly and glared unremorsefully at the desperate couple. It made Ellie step back in alarm as she saw the deadly purpose in Casey's eyes.

Casey growled, "My orders are clear. Walker, instead of riling your boyfriend up more, I would use your last few minutes to try to talk some sense into Chuck. You know I don't have a choice and I will use as much force as necessary to implement my orders. It would be a shame if you caused Chuck to be subjected to any more pain…"

Casey stopped when he saw the impact that his words had on Sarah.

He saw pain erupt upon her face when she realized what could happen to Chuck if he tried to fight. Casey watched as her body sagged and she buried her face into Chuck's chest.

It made Casey's chest hurt to see Sarah's heartbreak at the inevitableness of the situation.

Recognizing that he had won, Casey quietly said, "I'll give you a few minutes to say your goodbyes."

* * *

Once Casey left the room, Chuck pulled back from Sarah and sat upon her bed while holding her hand.

He looked at her fiercely and said, "I can't leave you Sarah. You are apart of me now. I won't leave without you. I can't do it. I swear I will fight him," stated Chuck with resolve.

In response, Sarah buried her head even deeper into his chest. Chuck leaned forward and kissed her forehead to try to comfort her. He continued, "We've come too far to let them break us up."

Sarah clutched the front of Chuck's shirt and pulled his away from her. Tears were flowing down Sarah's face. She wanted to agree with him, but knew that it would be foolhardy to resist and she wasn't in a good enough condition to protect Chuck.

With a sigh, Sarah whispered, "You can't fight him Chuck. You will force Casey to take extreme measures. He might not mean to…but he could hurt you. I don't want you hurt anymore than you already are."

Chuck shook his head frantically. He tried to argue with her. He professed his love to her but she continued to deny him. Finally he blurted out, "Sarah, I have to fight for us. We can't live apart. I can't leave you here in this hospital…"

Sarah replied, "You have to Chuck."

Ellie saw that his brother was unwilling to listen to Sarah. It alarmed her that Chuck was seriously contemplating rebelling against the government. "Sarah is right Chuck. You can't fight the government. You have to listen to Sarah. We have to leave her."

Chuck looked up at his sister and just shook his head with anger.

"Ellie if you understood what Sarah and I mean to each other…you would never tell me to leave her. Not like this," replied Chuck indignantly.

Chuck's words made Sarah's heart flutter. No one had ever fought for her like this. She knew what it meant for Chuck to defy his sister.

But the moment was quickly vanquished as Sarah contemplated the situation. It was greater than both of them. Sarah knew she couldn't let him fight Casey. It would be futile.

Sarah placed her fingers against Chuck's lips. She tapped his lips with the tip of her fingers to stop his protests.

Looking directly into his eyes, Sarah asked, "You trust me right?"

Chuck nodded silently as tears started to form in his eyes. He knew by the tone in her voice that Sarah she had made her decision.

"But…"

Sarah fingers tapped his lips again. Looking lovingly at his brown curls and gentle face, Sarah summoned all her courage. With a deep breath she told him that he needed to leave her.

Holding his hand, Sarah vowed, "This isn't the end."

Ellie watched as Chuck's shoulders sagged and Sarah melted into her brother. They let out small cries and began to kiss desperately. They both knew it could be their last kiss.

Eventually Sarah started to pat Chuck's back. He pulled back and they both took deep breaths. He stared intently at Sarah and with a small smile she told him it was time for him to go.

Ellie watched as Chuck took a few quick breaths and mumbled, "I love you Sarah." Tears ran down Sarah's face as she smiled encouragingly to him. She told him to be strong.

Chuck sighed and stood up awkwardly and turned towards Ellie. The young doctor recognized that Chuck was ready to go.

Ellie grasped Chuck's hand and began to usher him towards the exit.

When they reached the door, Ellie heard Sarah call her name. The young doctor stopped and looked at the blond women in the hospital bed.

"Could I talk to you alone for a minute?"

Ellie wasn't sure what Sarah wanted. The helicopter ride had mended some of the rift in their relationship, but Ellie still felt trepidation in being alone with Sarah.

However, she knew that she owed Sarah, so the doctor nodded quickly and ushered Chuck into the hallway where Casey awaited.

Ellie asked Casey for a minute and she returned to Sarah's room. The young doctor was somewhat dismayed when she returned. She found that Sarah was no longer the women desperately in love. Instead, Sarah sat in her hospital bed as the rigidly composed government agent.

Ellie was flabbergasted. Anger coursed through her as she considered the drastic change in the blond woman. _Was Sarah playing her brother?_ Ellie couldn't tell and it reminded the young doctor that she really didn't know Sarah Walker very well.

Ellie asked angrily, "What did you want?"

Sarah heard Ellie's tone and blanched. Fear raced through her. Her sudden resolve to deal with the situation logically started to falter. Sarah realized that Ellie held her entire future in her hands.

Sarah studied her hands for a few moments to compose her reply and to clamp down on her suddenly riotous emotions.

In a strained voice, Sarah replied, "Ellie, I know that I am not your favorite person in the world, and I know that I've never given you a reason to trust me. But you got to believe that I love your brother."

Ellie's eyes blazed and she bit back, "Why do I have to believe that Sarah? Just moments ago you were crying on my brother's shoulder professing your undying love and the next I'm talking to the cool government agent. What am I supposed to think? What is the real you?"

Sarah began to tremble and she was forced to bat away a few tears that fell down her cheeks. Sarah's calmness suddenly collapsed and she started to struggle for breath. It alarmed Ellie and the young doctor started towards Sarah's bed.

However, Sarah shook her head and gestured with her hand for Ellie to remain where she was.

"Just give me a moment," mumbled Sarah as she worked to gain control of her breathing. After a few moments, Sarah's calmness returned. The blond agent grabbed a piece of paper and a pen from her bedside table. She scribbled onto the piece of paper and then looked up at Ellie.

"Ellie I didn't ask to talk to you so that we can fight. Nor am I going to try to convince you that I am holding on by a thread. I am not good at showing emotions. I've never been good at sharing my emotions and I afraid that if I let them out….well…well then I wouldn't be of any use to anyone."

Sarah continued, "You probably think that I'm not good enough for Chuck. And I probably agree with you. Maybe he will even realize that some day. But right now…this instant…he needs me and to be honest…I need him."

Sarah searched Ellie's face for some sign of understanding, but the young doctor continued to stare warily at the blond agent.

"I wanted to give you this telephone number. It's a blind message site that I've set up. If you leave a message for The AllPro Travel Agency stating the address of your final safe house, I will meet up with you guys."

Ellie's eyes widened in alarm. "Sarah, I don't know about this. Casey and the government will be upset. I don't think it would be…."

Sarah interjected quickly, "Ellie I swear I will never tell them that you told me. They will just think that I'm a good agent. Chuck and I will be together and I can help him recover. You have to see that I can help him. Please just take the number."

Ellie took the piece of paper from Sarah hesitantly. "I don't know Sarah. I can't promise anything. I don't like the government very much, but I'm not stupid enough to want to cross them either."

Sarah looked imploringly at Ellie. 'They will never know," explained Sarah. "Sooner or later you will have access to a payphone or a stranger's phone. It doesn't matter how you do it. The number is toll free and can only be used once. There will be a low probability of tracing it back to you. If for some reason you do get caught, tell them that I threatened Devon."

Ellie looked down at the piece of paper for a bit and then looked up at Sarah. The women's eyes met. They held each other's gaze for a few moments before Ellie looked away. They both knew that Ellie didn't want to help Sarah.

Sarah's chest throbbed painfully at the thought of losing Chuck. The blond agent tried a different tact. Sarah pleaded, "Don't say no yet. Just keep the number. You will eventually see that Chuck needs me. "

Ellie put the paper in her pocket and started to walk to the door. When she reached the exit, she glanced back at Sarah. She was shocked to see that Sarah had morphed again. She was now wild eyed and shaking with emotion. It was a vision that would haunt Ellie for numerous nights to come. In that moment Ellie knew the depth of emotion that Sarah had for Chuck.

"I'll see what I can do."

Ellie rushed out of the hospital room without another word.


	12. Chapter 12: Changed Relationships

_Author's Note: There is some sexual content in this chapter._

* * *

**Chapter 12: Changed Relationships**

**Shadow Mountain Estates**

**Grand Lake, Colorado ~ Three Months Later**

Casey and Ellie sat companionately on the couch drinking coffee and splitting muffins waiting for the conference call with General Beckman to begin. Ellie glanced around the living room of their safe house.

Taking in the opulence of her surroundings, Ellie had to admit that their current living situation was near amazing. Chuck and Ellie had gone from living in their small apartment in Echo Park to a multi-million dollar lakeside estate in the mountains of Colorado. The last time she had been in town, she had heard that the locals dubbed the house the "mac-mansion."

In truth, the safe house really was truly awe inspiring. Casey had explained that a dot com executive had built the West Coast contemporary lodge with the full intent to have his residence featured in the pages of Architectural Design magazine. However, the executive had lost his estate to the government due to some highly illegal international banking transactions.

The lodge had been selected for their safe house because it had a mini medical facility attached to a wing of the lodge. The businessman had built the house with a state of the art imaging center for his sick daughter, so that their family physician could monitor the growth of his daughter's inoperable brain tumor.

Ellie absently wondered about the family and their fate. She seemed to be surrounded by so much loss. It reverberated in her as she tried not to think about the things that she left behind in Los Angeles.

Her eyes wandered along the intricate tiling along the wall until her gaze fell upon the lone figure that sat on a deck chair on the patio overlooking their lakeside dock. The large bay window gave her a clear view of the forlorn face of her brother as he gazed blankly at the breathtaking lakeside vista surrounding the lodge. She was sure that the view, as well as everything else around them, was lost to him.

"He's not really getting better is he?" asked Casey ruefully, before taking a sip of his coffee.

Ellie frowned as she tried to pick her words carefully. "Physically he is moving forward, but a person's ability to heal is so tied up with their state-of-mind. And well…we both know where Chuck's state of mind has been."

Casey grunted with frustration. "Beckman is not going to accept this for much longer," replied the NSA agent.

Ellie shot back in irritation, "Well, they should have thought about that before they separated him from Sarah. It's just too damn bad that their precious Intersect is inside a human….with human frailties."

Ellie took a drink of her coffee. "Besides, I've read the reports. It's a medical miracle that Chuck even survived The Institute. It's disgusting that the government actually allowed that mad man to do his work under the guise of medical research."

Casey studied Ellie for a long moment before replying, "This is a tough business. Sacrifices are made."

Ellie rolled her eyes. "Yes Casey, I know. You repeat that adage so much, I am beginning to think that you are trying to convince yourself and not trying to initiate me," replied Ellie sharply.

Casey's eyes bulged. He gave her a seething stare, but averted his eyes before she saw that she had struck a nerve.

"I'm just trying to make you see the situation clearly. It's been three months and Chuck hasn't improved at all," replied Casey tersely.

Ellie's eyes flashed and it caused the NSA agent to quickly add, "Neither the NSA nor the CIA are known for patience. They don't spend money for houses like this without expecting a payback."

Before Ellie could respond, a light started to flash on the video monitor signaling that their conference call was about to begin. Ellie gave Casey a pointed look before settling herself on the sofa. She schooled her expression to show her most professional demeanor.

General Beckman's face appeared upon the video monitor. She eyed the duo for a second before speaking.

"Good morning Doctor Bartowski. Agent Casey, I trust all is well," asked General Beckman from the video monitor.

Casey immediately provided a summary of their ongoing security measures and then Ellie provided on Chuck's unchanged medical condition.

The general listened attentively and then gave the duo a calculating look before continuing.

"Dr. Bartowski, the NSA has consulted with several top neurological specialists regarding Chuck's condition. After review of his latest MRIs, they recommend that he be given laser eye treatments to help alleviate some of the scar tissue that Chuck's exposure to The Institute may have caused along his optical nerve pathway. They feel that once it is cleared Chuck's vision will return and he will once again be able to flash. "

Ellie took the news with a clinical regard. She replied coolly, "I don't have the equipment here for that procedure. Nor do I have the training to perform the procedure."

"Yes, we know," explained the general. "I have arranged the use of a private laser eye center in Grand Lake. Chuck will have a series of outpatient treatments there. Agent Casey: you will provide all necessary security and Dr. Bartowski will monitor the treatments. We've run a background on the director of the facility there and we feel it is worth the risk for another doctor to become somewhat aware of Chuck's condition. Casey, you will monitor the director carefully."

Privately Ellie was somewhat torn by the news, but she worked to hide her feelings from the general. She wanted her brother to get well, but she knew that once his health returned, the government would once again endanger his life with a multitude of missions. She had seen his case file and knew that he had been injured numerous times while they lived in Los Angeles.

Ellie was somewhat embarrassed that she did not see all his injuries while they lived together in Los Angeles. She was after all a doctor. In her heart she knew that she had seen the signs but had wanted to ignore it. She promised herself this time she wouldn't ignore the reality of the situation.

Ellie was started out of her introspection when General Beckman asked for the second time, "Doctor Bartowski, could you please excuse us."

Ellie looked at the general and then at Casey who sat impassively on the couch. She knew that they were going to discuss topics that they felt they couldn't trust her with.

She wanted to protest, but she had already faced down Beckman on one too many issues. It was better to pick her battles. With absent nod, Ellie grabbed her jacket off the chair near her and went out the sliding glass door to join Chuck on the patio.

* * *

After Ellie had left the room, General Beckman peered at Casey and asked, "Do you think we can trust Dr. Bartowski to interact with the laser eye center personnel? This will be her first time in an uncontrolled environment."

Casey's eyes narrowed and pursed his lips as he considered the general's question. "Ellie Bartowski cares deeply for her brother and wouldn't do anything to jeopardize his safety."

The general frowned at Casey's response. "We do not want her contacting her ex-fiancé in Los Angeles. Watch her close at the laser eye center and do what is necessary to assure her continued cooperation," commanded General Beckman.

"Understood," responded Casey coldly.

* * *

Ellie walked out onto the deck and watched her brother as he sat in silence on the deck chair under a blanket. Their view lakeside view with the mountain backdrop was stunning and it never failed to make her stop and catch her breath when she came out upon the deck.

She knew that the government was spending a large amount of money to make Chuck's surroundings palatable, but as Ellie gazed at Chuck's forlorn form she knew it was all lost on him.

Chuck's eye sight had yet to return except for his ability to see light and dark shadows. Ellie suspected that his recovery was being hampered by his depression. Chuck pined for Sarah and he on more than one occasion had voiced his utter despair at their separation.

It was heartbreaking. Ellie had watched when Chuck had lost Jill after the Stanford debacle. But that time period did not remotely compare to his despair now.

It was almost like Chuck was slowly dying without Sarah and it made Ellie want to scream. She hated how much the blond agent had bewitched her brother. Ellie felt like she was losing him and she didn't know how to fight it.

"Chuck, are you warm enough with just that blanket? Do you want me to get your jacket?" asked Ellie with concern.

Chuck just nodded his head and let his shoulders sag. Ellie had noticed that her kid brother was slowly retreating into himself. His normally talkative nature had been transplanted with a quiet introspective stranger whose attempts to talk had become less and less frequent.

His response made Ellie's anger flare and she pursed her lips in frustration. The government had taken and taken from him, and now her brother was giving up. She wanted to yell at the unfairness of it all. But she didn't want to upset Chuck by revealing her strong emotions. Ellie had to be strong for him.

Batting down her anger, Ellie laid a comforting hand upon his shoulder and soothingly asked, "Chuck please answer me. Are you alright?"

Her gentle prodding seemed to break through to Chuck for a moment. He shifted and momentarily nestled his cheek against her reassuring hand. In a low voice Chuck replied, "I'm sorry Ellie. I don't need a jacket. The sun feels good upon my face. I was just caught up thinking about old times. I'm sorry I didn't answer." Chuck tried to give her a reassuring smile, but Ellie wasn't fooled.

His response made Ellie berate their situation once more. Over the past few months Chuck never stopped thinking about Sarah. It frustrated Ellie. Chuck sensing Ellie's resentment towards his blond protector, stopped talking about her.

But his sister knew.

Ellie had more than once thought about calling the number that Sarah had provided her, but the amount of security that was involved in protecting Chuck made her hesitate. She didn't think that the blond spy would knowingly expose Chuck, but under Casey's tutelage, Ellie had learned to take Chuck's security as top priority. The events at The Institute still played dramatically in her dreams.

So Ellie didn't make the call.

She wondered whether her unease with her decision was based upon the guilt she secretly felt for hoping that Chuck would forget about Sarah; or the guilt from knowing that she hadn't really tried to circumvent the security surrounding her and brother in order to attempt a call.

* * *

"One last thing General," asked Casey trying to hide his discomfort in asking the question yet again. "Have you been able to contact Agent Walker yet?"

General Beckman gave him an irritated stare. "No, Agent Casey. As per protocol, Agent Walker left the hospital almost immediately after your departure and went off the grid. Our attempts to make contact have yet to successful."

Casey looked down at his feet to hide unwilling to share the mixture of feelings that coursed through him with the general.

Seeing Casey's attempt to disengage in their conversation, the General asked pointedly, "Is the Intersect still acting out John?"

Her question jolted Casey and he suddenly felt an overwhelming need to protect Chuck from his bosses. The NSA agent looked up quickly responded, "No, nothing like that General. Chuck is fully cooperating. He is not acting out at all."

Feeling like she didn't have a clear understanding of the situation, the general demanded, "Then what is it John. What has you continuing to ask about Agent Walker's whereabouts?"

Casey tensed at the question. However he used his training to calm himself and he thought carefully about his response. He knew that his answer could do more harm than good.

"I know that Charles Bartowski is a very valuable asset to the government because of the secrets in his head and you've been very generous in providing a comfortable safe house for him to recover… physically…" replied Casey carefully.

The general eyed Casey critically and suddenly barked out, "Agent Casey stop wasting my time and say what you obviously feel the need to say."

Hearing the reprimand in the general's voice, Casey quickly explained, "Chuck Bartowski emotional health isn't good. Agent Walker always kept Chuck centered and he seems to be in free fall. I'm afraid that her absence is hampering his recovery."

The general smirked in dismay and shook her head disgustedly. "I told Graham that their dynamic wasn't good. We knew that Chuck Bartowski gained quite a bit of his emotional stability from his interactions with Agent Walker. I always felt their connection was too strong. I feared that Mr. Bartowski would have these types of difficulties. We were not as unaware as you might think, Agent Casey."

Casey was dismayed by the general's admission. Unwilling to let the moment be wasted, he offered quickly, "Chuck's a valuable asset whose recovery would be greatly aided by the reintroduction of Agent Walker. We established their relationship and it makes sense that Chuck would need…"

General Beckman pounded her hand against her desk to stopping his speech. In an irritated voice she spat out, "John, don't you think we know that? You think that we have been trying to contact Agent Walker?"

"Walker has dropped off the grid and hasn't tried to make contact. It is protocol when a deep cover is compromised, but normally an injured agent does periodic check-ins," explained Beckman.

"But it's my belief that Walker got too involved with the asset and we are seeing her irritation at being left at the hospital. I suspect she has some strong feelings motivating her current actions," offered the general.

"Graham disagrees, but regardless of the reason we have been unable to contact Agent Walker to reunite her with Mr. Bartowski. Regardless of my feelings on the matter, we recognize that beyond Chuck's physical ailments, we need to address his emotional issues as well. Are you satisfied with that response Agent Casey?"

Unable to put together an appropriate reply, Casey simply tilted his head and raised his eyebrows. He was amazed that she apparently had understood the emotional turmoil underneath all their stoic fronts.

Beckman slammed her finger on the keyboard in front of her ending their conference call without another word. Seeing the silent ire of General Beckman and her pique as she ended the transmission, Casey barked out a laugh. With a small smile on his lips, he shook his head in disbelief.

'You sly old coot. I should have known that nothing ever gets past you.'

* * *

**Bride's Dressing Room**

**Pasadena, California**

Casey stared in shock at Ellie. "I would have bet my mother's fine china that you contacted Walker," remarked Casey in disbelief.

The raven haired doctor stared back at the NSA agent. "Well, I'm astounded too. I can't believe that the government willingly wanted to reunite them. They always made everything so hard," replied Ellie in exasperation.

The young doctor sat down heavily on the settee. "That was always the worst thing about my time away," offered Ellie as she looked at Devon beseechingly. "Even after months of being immersed in their world, I was never trusted. But then again, no one in their world was ever above suspicion, nor was anything ever as it appeared. There was always an agenda."

Ellie placed her hands in her lap and stared down at the engagement ring upon her hand. The ring was a reminder of the world she was now in. There wasn't supposed to be any more lies, nor any omissions in the world that she now wanted so desperately to belong.

"Casey I didn't say that I didn't try to contact her. What I was trying to make you understand was that I didn't want contact her," replied Ellie sadly.

"But Chuck was dying without her. I couldn't ignore that," explained Ellie as she looked pointedly at Casey.

"So you told her that we were at Shadow Mountain?" inquired Casey with censure in his voice.

Ellie hid her face in her hands. She knew that he would see her actions as some type of betrayal to him. It made her head hurt and she worked to keep from crying out in frustration. John was her only friend that really understood what happened to her. She didn't want to jeopardize their friendship, but she was desperate to stop the all the lies and omissions of truth that her time in the spy world had introduced into her life.

Taking a deep breath, Ellie explained, "I tried to contact her, but she had already found us. Sarah didn't believe me. It was just one more thing that she held against me."

Casey ran a hand through his hair and asked more to himself than anyone in the room, "I wonder how she found us then."

Ellie grimaced. "Casey, I'm sorry that I'm the one to tell you this, but you aren't as good a spy as you think you are."

Casey's eyes narrowed and he quickly sized up Devon before leveling his deadly stare at Ellie. "What are you talking about?"

Ellie looked at Casey's scowl and decided that she needed to light the tone of their conversation. She teasingly replied, "Don't give me that look, Casey, it doesn't work on me anymore."

Casey's scowl deepened and Ellie knew that he would not respond to her gentle teasing. With an exhausted sigh, Ellie explained, "Sarah told me how she found us. It's rather ridiculous. But she found because she tracked you."

Ellie's words made Casey's eyes bulge. He prided himself on his ability to do his job and the young doctor seemed to imply that he somehow had allowed Sarah to find them. It infuriated him.

Casey growled angrily and his hands tensed in fists, "You don't know what you are talking about. I would never lead Walker, Fulcrum or anyone else to Chuck."

Ellie took in his clenched fists and the loss of color in his cheeks. She saw Devon tense and she quickly shook her head to keep him from interjecting.

The young doctor wished that she could spare John the truth. She knew that her revelation would be a blow to his professional pride.

Averting her eyes so she didn't have to see his reaction, Ellie explained in a low voice, "It was the bonsai fertilizer."

"What?" asked Casey in confusion. Surely he must have misheard her.

"Sarah told me that she watched for sales of your specialized bonsai tree fertilizer. She found us by tracking you," replied Ellie with more strongly.

Casey looked around the room in shock. He was the consummate professional and he more than once thought that he was only one in this mess who hadn't erred in judgment. He sat down heavily upon the couch. Casey shook his head and mumbled, "Sarah never told me. She let me assume that you were the weak link."

Ellie and Casey exchanged knowing looks. They were both sorry for what had always been left unsaid between them. However, their brief was quickly interrupted by Devon who excitedly asked, "So our kids got back together? I knew they were always meant for each other. How did it happen?"

Casey looked at Devon who was smiling gleefully at the thought that Sarah and Chuck together. The NSA agent realized that it was a good thing and when he thought about the events that transpired, he couldn't help but chuckle. Walker certainly was surprising.

* * *

**Shadow Mountain Estates **

**Grand Lake, Colorado ~ One Month Later **

Casey, Chuck and Ellie returned to their Shadow Mountain Lakeside lodge late in the day after a full day at the laser eye center. It was the third treatment and the trio had settled into a routine of sorts. They were all in an upbeat mood because Chuck had begun to see some improvement in his eyesight and they were all buoyed by his positive prognosis.

Casey and Ellie had built a camaraderie of sorts. Initially it had been hard on the NSA agent since he wasn't one to share himself, but Ellie was adamant about keeping a steady conversation flowing around Chuck. She had explained that it was important to engage him and the young doctor hoped that continued light conversation would eventually draw her brother out of his depression.

The doctor's plan had initially made Casey wary. He wasn't a natural conversationalist and he was unsure if he could have a 'light' conversation.

But Ellie's natural friendliness had won over the stoic NSA agent and Casey found himself talking amicably with the young doctor. He even had stopped worrying about gaps in their conversation that sometimes occurred as they drove down the picturesque highway back towards their house.

Casey enjoyed their outings to the laser eye center. The crisp fresh air and the friendliness of the Colorado mountain town had done wonders for Chuck's disposition. Casey could see that Chuck's brief visits into town had made him forget the dire circumstances of his situation.

Both Casey and Ellie were quietly relieved when they glimpsed small traces of the old Chuck. They both smiled inwardly as they watched Chuck gently tease their waitress during breakfast at the local diner. Casey even laughed out loud when Chuck started cracking Ray Charles jokes about himself in his dark glasses.

The trio returned home in their upbeat mood and Casey pulled his dark SUV into the garage. The garage was connected to the main house through the kitchen and per protocol they all remained in the vehicle until the garage door was safely closed.

Ellie jumped out of the vehicle and opened the back door to help Chuck into the house while Casey grabbed several bags of groceries that were in the back. The NSA agent made it to the kitchen door first and he entered the code to disengage the security system before he walked into the kitchen and put his packages on the counter.

Suddenly Casey felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Something in the lodge had changed and his intuition started to scream at him. He turned to Ellie who had stopped speaking as she watched Casey's sudden transformation.

The NSA agent urged her to keep talking as he took his gun out from the back of the holster at the center of his back. He opened a cabinet in the kitchen that held several a surveillance monitor where he could cycle through several camera feeds. He scanned the house looking for an intruder.

Seeing nothing in the cameras, Casey let out the breath he had been subconsciously holding. He pulled up the security logs and found no indication that someone had accessed the house or the surrounding grounds. However his unease did not abate and he frowned as he strained his senses to pick up any indication of an intruder.

"Ellie let me do a walk around in the house. I'm going to lock you in the garage. If I don't return in a few minutes, take the SUV and drive to our secondary meeting point. Call Beckman from the road."

The young doctor eyed the NSA agent with wide eyes. Their upbeat mood had suddenly been crushed by the possibility of real danger. Ellie's eyes grew wide and her body started to tremble. Casey could see that Ellie was about to cry.

To both their surprise, Chuck grabbed Ellie and hugged her fiercely. "We will be alright. Casey can handle it. Help me back to the truck," ordered Chuck with resolve.

Ellie was distracted by Chuck's demands and she turned away from the imposing figure of Casey leaving the kitchen with a gun in his hand. Casey watched them enter the garage. Satisfied that they were heeding his commands, he locked the two deadbolts on the door and hid the keys in the kitchen. He then began his patrol of the house.

After several long and tense minutes, Ellie and Chuck heard Casey yelling through the door telling them that everything was alright. They then saw him open the door and pop his head out with a puzzled look upon his face.

"Did you find anything?"

Casey shook in head negatively. "I guess I was imagining things," replied Casey tersely.

Ellie helped Chuck into the kitchen and Casey and Ellie began dinner while Chuck sat at the table deep in thought.

The duo tried to recreate the upbeat mood from earlier in the day, but their momentary bit of drama cast a shadow upon their dinner. Both Casey and Ellie watched Chuck closely attempting to ascertain his mood as he ate silently.

Casey was on high alert throughout diner. His senses continued to scream at him that something wasn't right. The NSA agent was surreptitiously scanning the next room through the open doorway from his dinner chair, when Chuck's arm shot out suddenly.

Chuck grabbed Ellie's arm and he looked forlornly at her. "I am so sorry that I ever got you involved in all this," offered Chuck sadly. The monumental sorrow in her brother's voice made Ellie want to cry. She stood up and hugged him. "Honey…I know it's not your fault."

The family moment made Casey uncomfortable and he stood up quickly and mumbled that he was going to take another look around the house.

When Casey returned, Ellie was clearing the table and wiping a solitary tear from her cheek. Seeing her sad expression, Casey wanted to ask about her but instead he asked, "Is the kid alright?"

Ellie gave him a wry smile. "I'm sure he will be fine. He's upset and has gone to bed. He just forgot about all the danger for awhile. I guess we both did."

She carried a few dishes into the kitchen and returned with a thoughtful look upon her face. Giving Casey a half smile, she asked "Are you sure you don't know what got your Spiderman senses acting up?"

Casey chuckled. "You sound like your brother."

Ellie laughed at her joke and it seemed to lighten their mood. They went into the living room and plopped down on the couch. Casey grabbed a book and Ellie flipped on the television.

Ellie began watching a romantic comedy but noticed that Casey was making odd sounds every so often. Watching him from the corner of her eye, she noticed him roll his eyes numerous times and actually snort.

"You know snorting is very unbecoming," remarked Ellie as she watched Casey exhibit his obvious disdain over the movie she was watching.

Her comment was all the catalyst he needed to begin speaking. "How can you watch that drivel? It's totally unrealistic."

Ellie laughed and Casey began a long tirade on how television was slowly deadening the collective brainpower of America's youth.

She plopped her head upon her hands and smiled in amusement at at how serious Casey was in his beliefs about the detrimental nature of television.

Her serious face bursting with glee, she couldn't stop her laughing at Casey's response when she playfully asked, "Well if that's true, how do you explain my brother the brain?"

* * *

Around ten, Casey got up to make popcorn for them and he did a quick walk around the house before rejoining Ellie.

She grinned at him as she grabbed her bowl of popcorn. "Spidey sense again?"

Casey rolled his eyes at her teasing and he grabbed the remote control off her lap quickly and switched the channel to the news which he told Ellie was manly and promoted brain power in his estimation.

She threw at pillow at his head and he laughed at himself. However even with their easy camaraderie, he just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right.

* * *

Around midnight, a dark clad ninja like figure slowly inched his way down from the top of the tall closet in the hallway. With stealth like movements, the figure moved down the hallway making sure that each of his footsteps was silently muffled.

When the figure reached the door, he deftly grabbed the doorknob and silently opened the door just enough to enter the room before closing the door behind them.

At the doorway, the figure stopped and stared at the dark haired man who slept on the bed that was positioned across the room.

The figure slowly made his way towards the bed and stood above the sleeping man.

Sensing that someone was watching him, the man woke up. With a sense of dread the brown haired man whispered, "Is someone there?" as he struggled to find the lamp on his nightstand.

The stealth figure grabbed the man's wrist which frightened the man. He let out a yelp before the figure placed a calming finger across his lips.

"Sarah?" asked Chuck, as he stopped flaying about.

The dark clad figure reached up and tore off the mask she was wearing and shook out her golden flock of hair. "It's me," whispered the blond agent as sat beside Chuck and took in his glazed eyes. She frowned sadly as she realized that he couldn't see her.

Knowing that he couldn't see her she suddenly melted upon him desperate to connect with him. She grabbed his head and kissed him hard as she attempted to telegraph her strong emotions for him.

Chuck was momentarily taken back by her passionate kiss. But his longing for her quickly took over as he felt the overwhelming need to entangle himself in her. He felt her invade him with her tongue and it made him cry out in hunger as his defenses melted. He feverently kissed her back and grabbed her head forcefully as he took command of their kiss.

He wanted to drink in the vision of her. His eyes strained vainly as he tried to catch a glimpse her. He growled low in his throat when he realized that his eyes had failed him. But then his other senses kicked into overdrive and they threatening to overwhelm him. His body turned hyper-sensitive as he took in the feel of her skin, the scent of her hair, the taste of her lips. He was in freefall as his body absorbed her in.

Panting heavily, he tore his lips from her neck. His heart was racing and he urged it to slow down. It knew it was too soon to be this close to the edge. He pushed her back and asked, "Is this a dream?"

Sarah chuckled and replied, "If it's a dream…then I'm dreaming too. Besides, in the morning I think I'm going to have a mark on my neck from you."

Chuck looked embarrassed but she just grinned and traced a loving hand across his brow. Sarah moved so that she straddled Chuck upon the bed. "I've waited so long for this."

The blonde agent stared intently at Chuck's face as she guided his hands to her breasts. Her heart skipped when she saw the awe in his face as he touched her. Suddenly his face turned to raw need and it spurred a waterfall of emotions as she felt his presence tug at everything that was feminine in her. Letting out a cry of joy, she bent down and captured his lips with her own. She let the hunger for his taste rocket through her system.

They kissed with a burning need. Neither had been sure that they would ever see each other again. They embraced fiercely unwilling to allow any space between their bodies, all the while caught up in the feel and taste of each other's lips.

Suddenly Chuck grabbed Sarah's shoulders and he sat up so that she was nestled in his lap. The pressure of her against him made him growl with unmet need. He pulled her in tightly against his chest and ground pushed her down into his lap. She followed up with her own low growl as she felt the hardness of him near her aching need.

His breath ragged, he worked to gain control of his body as he held her writhing form. Chuck fought the urge to take her mouth which was mere inches from his own. He needed her in so many ways, but now he had to tell her what was in his heart.

Breathing deeply to take in her scent, Chuck nuzzled in mouth near her ear as he whispered, "I thought I'd never see you again. I thought I'd never get a chance to love you." Unable to stop himself, he seized her earlobe between his lips and bit down gently until he felt her respond.

Sarah arched into him and nuzzled her mouth near his his ear. "Chuck I've missed you so much. You are so a part of me," explained Sarah, as she ran her fingers through his hair. Wanting him to tremble, she focused her tongue upon his ear.

Satisfied with his response, Sarah let out a groan. Her body shook with the need to feel more of him. She grabbed the tail end of his shirt and pulled it up and off of him. Mesmorized by the view, she pushed Chuck down upon the bed and smiled as her fingers explored the contours of his chest.

Sarah simply reveled in the feel of him in her hands. It was intoxicating and she knew it wasn't going to stop. She grabbed his shoulders and embraced him as she murmured, "I love you," before her lips found another tender spot upon his neck.

Chuck couldn't get enough of the woman in his arms. It was beyond his wildest dreams that she was here with him; professing her love for him.

His body was trembling and he couldn't stop the smile upon his face as recognized the erratic beating of her heart upon his chest as she strained against him. He couldn't tell whose hands were more desperate as he cupped and caressed her and she pushed her body into him, mimicking their act to come.

Sarah was everything to him. His heart raced when he felt her tremble as his hands dipped under her shirt and he began to run his fingers up and down her spine. He wanted her so much.

"Sarah, I need…" pleaded Chuck into her ear. But any admissions were stopped as she hungrily captured his mouth with hers.

After several long minutes she broke off their kiss for air. Cupping his face, Sarah looked at him longingly. "I know what you need." murmured Sarah as she took small love bites along his jaw. "I need it too."

Chuck grabbed her head and forced her to look at him. "I need you now. But I don't understand how you are here," replied Chuck feverishly.

"We'll talk later," replied Sarah as her hands startled to explore the length of his chest. His breath hitched when she reached below his navel. Tearing her eyes away from her hands, Sarah looked up into his eyes.

"But right now," whispered Sarah breathlessly, "I just want you."

* * *

Casey woke up on the couch with Ellie's head on his shoulder. She was fast asleep and splayed out on the couch next to him. He moved his bowl of popcorn that sat precariously on the edge of the couch and covered Ellie with a blanket.

He was about to switch off the television when he heard a strange sound. His senses went into overdrive and he stealthily got to his feet and pulled out his gun.

Casey moved quickly through the living room and into the hallway that led to the bedroom where Chuck slept.

As he headed down the hallway he heard a series of noises from Chuck's room.

His heart quickened as he thought of all the possible tortures that his charge might be facing. Steeling himself for the worst, the NSA moved quickly to the door and burst through it with his gun raised.

His mind reeled as he took in the sight before him. He saw Chuck and Sarah upon the bed. His charge was shirtless and a darkly clad Sarah Walker was straddling him.

Casey stood in the doorway in shock. His gun fell to his side as he took in the scene.

Chuck's hands stopped and he was about to speak when he saw Sarah brush a finger to his lips. Sarah looked over her shoulder at Casey with a challenge in her eyes.

The NSA agent took in her fierce appearance that he would later liken to a mountain lion guarding her cub. Even with her back to him, Casey could feel the animosity in her eyes as she looked at him.

Casey momentarily considered charging into the room and pulling Sarah off his asset. But his inner voice stopped him as he took in the strong emotions on Chuck's face. Casey recognized that the young man needed her; and by the fierce look on Sarah's face, it was blatently clear that she was willing to fight before she relinquished her spot atop him.

With a sigh, the NSA agent's shoulders sagged. Casey pinched his lips in displeasure at the thought that he had ventured in on their lovemaking. He reached for the doorknob to escape.

As he pulled the door closed, Casey stopped when he caught a reflection of light as Sarah shifted positions. Casey tensed when he realized that the hallway light had reflected against her gun that she had stealthily hid in the sheets in front of her.

Casey brow furled as he looked up into Sarah's eyes. Her eyes were fierce and cold. She was indeed ready to fight. He momentarily contemplated raising his gun.

They stared intently at each other for a moment before Casey willed himself to relax. Sensing that Casey was standing down, Sarah gave him a deadly smile and turned her attention back to Chuck effectively dismissing Casey from the room.

Casey stood in the doorway immobile for a second as he contemplated the change in his relationship with Sarah. However he was jolted back to reality when he saw Sarah grab Chuck's hands and slip them under her shirt near her breasts.

Embarrassed by the intimacy of the moment, Casey quickly closed the door, but not before he saw the milky white back of Sarah Walker.

Entering the living room, Ellie turned towards Casey and took in his face. She stretched out lazily and asked, "John, what's wrong?"

He stared at the young doctor for a moment and frowned. Things were going to change dramatically.

Steeling himself, he watched Ellie's face turn chalky as he replied, "Sarah's back and she's not happy with us."

____________________________________________________________________

Thanks BR and Sharp for the Beta. I did lots of re-writes based upon their comments. All new errors are my own.


	13. Chapter 13: Meltdown

_Author's Note: No excuses. I'm very, very late. A broken computer, a few trips, a new love in my life and dreaded work has kept me away from writing. Wow! Thank you Chuck & Sarah for bringing something really special into my life. I owe the show. _

**

* * *

****Shadow Mountain Estates**

**Kitchen – 5:15 am**

Casey stared at his coffee and released a disgruntled sound as he ran his finger over the rim of his cup. He wanted to break something but knew he couldn't afford to let his temper run free. Walker had already shown him that he had gone soft. He'd be damned if he let her see him lose control.

He picked up his coffee cup but swiftly slammed it back upon the kitchen table. He sighed. At least Ellie had gone to bed and he was saved from her giving him cow eyes every few minutes. _Hell, what was he supposed to say? _

Casey growled under his breath. _What was there to say! Yes, Walker was in Bartowski's room. Yes, she was blowing God knows what's left of the moron's brain away_.

He grunted in disgust. To distract himself, Casey grabbed his phone and looked for any missed calls or encrypted communiqués from Beckman. He wanted word that the General knew about Walker's arrival. Hell, he'd settle for anything right now. He hated waiting blindly.

However, the NSA agent had a sinking feeling that Walker's return was not sanctioned. Casey had gone so far as to logging into the NSA server to check his mail in case his new high tech, encrypted NSA sanctioned cell phone wasn't working.

But to Casey's dismay, there was nothing.

The brooding agent was left to surmise that Walker's return was not expected and she was pursuing her own agenda.

Casey briefly considered reporting Walker's appearance, but decided that he needed to ascertain her intent first. Upon her appearance, he had identified her as a combatant but quickly dismissed the idea. If the CIA skirt had really meant ill, Casey and his charges would be dead.

No, Walker didn't want to kill him. But she was definitely up to something, and Casey was going to ferret it out.

It wasn't that he hadn't wanted Walker to return. In fact, he had been relentless in his inquires regarding Walker's whereabouts with the General.

But Casey had never expected Walker to return like this. It irked him that Walker was doing the horizontal mambo with Bartowski before speaking to him. It spoke volumes about respect, or the lack thereof.

With an angry growl, Casey pushed back his chair and walked to the bay window overlooking the lodge's waterfront deck. He muttered to himself. He hadn't liked how the mission had played out in Twenty-Nine Palms. _But Walker was a big girl. She had to understand that he was following orders._

Casey's thoughts were interrupted when he felt the hairs on the back of his neck start to raise. He stiffened and swiftly turned around. He let out a small curse when he saw that Sarah had silently entered the room and was sitting at the kitchen table with a gun pointing at him.

The NSA agent's training kicked in and he recognized that he needed to keep his cool. He forced his body to ease out of its attack posture, but couldn't resist snarling, "You really shouldn't point a weapon at someone unless you're willing to use it Walker."

Sarah eyed him coolly and shrugged. "You're right Casey. Besides I just wanted to talk," replied Sarah as she laid the gun gingerly on the table.

"I used the gun to keep you from going all raging bull on me. It's for appearances only. I just needed to slow you down a step, so we could talk."

Casey looked down at the gun and then up at Sarah. Casey considered lunging for the gun but decided that it was too large of a risk. He had a mission to protect and he was curious about what Sarah had to say.

However, it didn't stop him from verbally attacking her. He railed, "You know better that to approach an operation like this! It's infantile. Beckman probably will order me to put a bullet in your head!"

"Okay Casey, I'll admit that I didn't follow protocol," replied Sarah sheepishly. "But I can help you. Get me the authorization to be here. They're not going to assign anyone else to your detail, Casey. It's too dangerous. I can be your relief," pleaded Sarah.

Casey smirked maliciously, "Oh yeah? How am I supposed to rely on you? You're sleeping with your asset. You're supposed to be his handler for God's sakes!"

Sarah grabbed the edge of the table as her emotions started to erupt. Her quick movements caused Casey to tense. Seeing his reaction, Sarah forced herself to release the edge of the table. Clenching her jaw, she quietly replied, "I'm not Chuck's handler anymore."

Casey jerked his head in disdain. "Walker, don't give me that crap! That's just semantics. You're my partner…"

"Don't give me that partner crap," retorted Sarah angrily, grabbing the table again.

Seeing his puzzled look, she replied angrily. "You don't leave incapacitated partners to die! You knew that we had Fulcrum agents pursuing us. Yet you left me there alone, nearly defenseless."

Affronted, Casey stood up quickly and retorted, "You were safely jetted back to D.C. or to some other comfy CIA country club for recovering agents. Don't try to guilt trip me Walker. It's just too damn bad that I ruined your party. So what if you couldn't make moon eyes at your boy toy anymore!"

Sarah cobalt blue eyes burned into him. He saw her anger blaze towards him and then as fast as it appeared, it melted away as she suddenly let out a tired sigh. "Moon eyes? That's rich, Casey," said Sarah sadly. "There were no comfy country clubs waiting for me. Just angry men with guns. "

Shocked, Casey shook his head in consternation. Not wanting to really know, he bit out roughly, "Didn't Beckman attempt to get you out?"

Sarah nodded gravely. "No."

With a furled brow she offered tiredly, "I suppose it was her way of eliminating a loose end; one less person who knew the identity of The Intersect. Maybe she thought I had too much pull with him."

Casey grimaced remember his recent conversation with Beckman. "Sarah, I didn't know. I thought you were being protected."

Sarah sighed before shaking her head sadly. "Casey, I'm not the first spy to be burned. I found my own way to safety. Later the government attempted to contact me, but I knew the score. I stayed off-grid."

Casey pursed his lips as he evaluated Walker. He sensed that she was telling him the truth but he was still leery of Sarah's motivations and her sudden appearance.

Trying to pry more information from her, the NSA agent replied coolly, "I'm sorry that it went down the way it did. But I'm not sure how I could help. Barging into my operation and sleeping with my asset isn't the way to convince me to help you be re-instated."

Sarah eyed Casey for a moment. Bolstering her resolve, she gulped loudly before stating with conviction, "I don't want to be re-instated. I just want to be allowed to be Chuck's vetted companion."

He sneered disbelievingly. "A vetted companion? Is that code for girl friend? Christ, I think I've heard it all,_"_ mocked Casey.

Ignoring his comments, Sarah added quickly, "Casey, you know they are not going to assign anyone else to your detail. It's too dangerous. You know me. I can help with his security even if I'm not designated as a handler. My only condition is that I be allowed to be with Chuck."

"For God's sake Sarah, do you have any idea what you're asking? You're already burned. Asking this will just get you dead," exploded Casey in disbelief.

_How could Walker think this would work?_

Casey shook his head in disbelief. When they had first started working together, he had read her dossier which included her psych profile. It hadn't indicated that she could be self delusional.

Grimacing, he realized that besides the Larkin fiasco, he'd been impressed by her professionalism and her well documented fighting capabilities.

Suddenly remembering those abilities, he stiffened. He also remembered that she was a well skilled liar. His inner alarms sounded and he looked up sharply. The sadness in her eyes were gone. It was replaced by a hardness that he hadn't seen before.

He instinctively glanced down to where the gun had laid upon the table. The spot was empty.

Sarah had shifted and her hands were now conveniently hidden under the table. Casey's eyes bulged and he noted that Sarah was now wearing her poker face. He didn't have to guess where her gun was.

_Had she really gone so insane that she was willing to kill him and fight the entire U.S. government to be with Chuck? _

_He couldn't let himself get caught up in trying helping his ex-partner. _Casey knew she had the advantage. He was all but certain that she had her gun pointed at him under the table.

With detachment, he recognized that he was not going to survive this confrontation. She had the gun. But he had a duty to try. So Casey slowly shifted his weight and prepared himself to lunge at Sarah.

As he began to push forward, he saw Sarah's body begin to shake and tears start to fall down her face. She pulled her gun from under the table and laid the weapon down.

Sarah wiped away a tear from her face before she began to speak.

"I can't fight you. Chuck is too weak to even think about running. He needs all the medical help he can get from the government. I love him too much to ask him to run."

Her body shuddered as Casey watched the once hard-as-nails agent break down before his eyes.

Sarah grabbed Casey's hand and clasped it between hers. She implored, "He needs me Casey. You have to have seen it. He's broken. He's not the same inside. I saw it. But I know I can help him."

Casey was torn between trying to extract his hand from Sarah's grasp and watching her emotional breakdown play across her face.

With watery eyes and a running nose, she begged the NSA agent. "I need him too. I need him to fix me on the inside."

Casey sat back in his seat and regarded Sarah. She had broken down. She had let him see her devoid of any defenses. Casey knew that their conversation was not a tactical negotiation; it was in fact Sarah's last hope for some semblance of a future.

It struck Casey that he had never really trusted Sarah's feelings for Chuck. He knew that she had some attachment for the nerd, but he had never truly believed. His jaded self could never quite get past the fact that she was a deep cover CIA agent trained to use sex as a weapon.

However witnessing her complete meltdown, Casey finally believed. At the root of her despair, she was asking for something that she knew was impossible. In their their spy world, it was completely illogical.

But it was human all the same. Somehow, it made his decision easier.

Pushing back his chair forcibly, Casey grabbed his coffee cup off the table and put it in the sink. Turing his back to her, he growled, "Don't flaunt it in my face, Walker."

Not wanting to see her response, Casey quickly walked out of the kitchen and down the hallway.

From somewhere deep within the house, Casey pondered his own humanity as he yelled back at her, "I'll talk to Beckman."

* * *

**Bride's Dressing Room**

**Pasadena, California**

"Wow John, that's quite the story," replied Devon with a concern as he watched John and Ellie exchange knowing glances.

Not receiving a response, the young doctor raised a questioning brow at Casey.

The NSA agent ignored him and Devon was forced to ask, "The government didn't do anything to her? You were able to bring her back?"

Casey just grimaced and remained silent. Devon watched as the NSA agent shot another questioning glance at Ellie.

Devon realized that Ellie had silently retreated from their conversation. Devon quickly looked at the NSA agent in attempt to understand his fiancé's strange reaction.

"What the hell did the government do, John?" asked Devon angrily.

Casey grimaced and Ellie tensed her body. Devon rushed towards his fiancé and knelt down beside the settee where she sat. Ellie ignored him by picking at an imaginary piece of lint on her dress.

Devon frowned and ducked his head into her line of sight. Looking forlornly up at Ellie, Devon offered softly, "I'm sure whatever it is…it wasn't your fault Ellie."

Devon noticed a lone tear running down her face. He wiped it away and squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Ellie, please don't cry," consoled Devon as he tried to cup her face with his free hand.

Ellie avoided his outreached hand and bit out, "That's where you are wrong Devon."

Rebuffed, Devon stopped trying to touch her. But still tried to console her by adding, "You have to hold onto the fact that Chuck and Sarah loved each other. Be happy for the time they had."

Ellie's body flinched back and she looked sharply at Devon before her body began to shake. Devon stared incredulously at his fiancé's reaction.

The doctor rocked backward in surprise when he heard Casey mumble 'moron' closely behind him. Turning, Devon saw Casey staring menacingly down at him.

"Just shut your mouth," growled Casey as started to grab Devon's collar.

Ellie swatted Casey's hand away from Devon's neck. "No John, he's right," stated Ellie dejectedly. "I should have been happy for them."

Casey grunted unhappily. "You were trying to watch out for your brother. You had plenty of reasons to distrust us. Hell, I had my orders. You know some of them weren't necessarily in your brother's best interest."

Ellie regarded Casey for a moment and shrugged. She looked back at Devon's confused face and smiled sadly before wiping away a tear from her face.

"John was able to convince the government to allow Sarah back. But I wasn't happy. All I could see was that my wonderfully sweet, blind brother was being duped by a cold blooded killer."

Devon tilted his head in disbelief. "Babe, I'm sure Sarah seemed that way because of everything that happened, but I'm sure she cared for him."

Ellie's eyes glistened painfully. "That's just it Devon. I couldn't get past that. I couldn't see that then. "

Devon suddenly felt some trepidation. He looked at the NSA agent and asked for a better explanation.

Casey frowned. He didn't like dwelling upon the past, but knowing that Ellie needed Devon to understand.

"I got Sarah re-instated. Beckman had already realized her error at the hospital. She didn't apologize but neither did she stand in the way of Walker's return. Chuck was just too valuable. Besides, it was immediately apparent how positive Sarah's presence was on Chuck's emotional and physical well being."

Devon shook his head in confusion. He still didn't understand.

Casey sighed. "Sarah's demeanor changed drastically. Suddenly she didn't have to hide her feelings for Chuck. She was happy. They were happy," explained Casey as he glanced cautiously at Ellie. "It was hard to watch."

Devon shot another puzzled look at the NSA agent. However, his gaze was torn away when Ellie grabbed his collar and forced him to look at her.

"Don't you get it?" shrieked Ellie. "I couldn't take it. Maybe it was jealousy. Maybe it was something else. I don't know."

Shaking her head, Ellie cried, "I thought I had to save him. But in the end, all I did was…was…destroy him."


	14. Chapter 14: A Doctor, Please

Shadow Mountain Estates

Grand Lake, Colorado

Six Months Later

Ellie leaned against the rail on the back terrace of her assigned home. She felt so lost as she considered the cool waters of the lake that was steps away from the multi-million dollar estate that the government had converted into a safe house for Chuck and her.

The term 'safe house' was a relative term. It was designed to keep Chuck and all the secrets in his head away from enemies of the government. But it also assured that her brother remained a pawn to powerful, anonymous men who would stop at nothing to assure that he performed on command.

When they had arrived at the estate, Chuck's condition had been dire. Neurologically it was clear that he had significant injuries from the torture he had endured at the hands of the infamous ex-CIA doctor, called 'The Brain Snatcher' for his proclivity for destroying the brains of his patients. But it was really his emotional state that had truly endangered his life. She had seen many patients during her career that had died from non-life threatening injuries because they had simply given up while working at her hospital.

She had seen the hopelessness in Chuck's eyes and she knew he was on the edge. In the first few weeks of their arrival, Ellie even contemplated Chuck actually dying. It was during these musings that she first realized that if her brother died, the government would surely kill her.

She realized that she would be a loose end without Chuck. When she saw the medical wing attached to their safe house, she knew that for now the government had cast her in to role as Chuck's physician. However, without Chuck her prospects were quite dire considering the government had no need for a civilian physician, especially one who knew about Chuck and the ability for the government to embed data into people's head.

Not that she had much time to dwell on her plight. Upon their arrival, Ellie had been ordered to immediately start giving bi-weekly reports on her brother's condition. Her report were given via ultra-high secured communication channels that bordered on something she would expected to see in a James Bond movie.

But her fascination with all the gadgetry quickly faded away when she realized that she was being forced to report her findings to a panel of humorless men who's faces were intentionally blurred to maintain their anonymity on her telecommunication monitor. They questioned every tiny detail of her report. It was clear during their teleconference calls that her questioners deemed her medical skills insufficient and took pleasure in condemning her perceived incompetence at her every move.

It was mortifying to have John Casey witnessed her crucifixion each week in the small office she used in the medical wing of the estate. He would stoically watch her scramble to satisfy her questioners each week as she described every detail of Chuck's condition and the laboratory test results that she was forced to run on him each week.

Initially she had been so intimidated. She was no allowed to know any details regarding the intersect technology or how it had affected Chuck neurologically. Instead her questioners would brutally cross-examine her efforts to care for her patient. It was clear that they wanted Chuck's recovery in order for him to once again become The Intersect. But his eyesight had been badly damaged, and for some unknown reasons Chuck had been experiencing a series of mini-stokes, which were damaging his brain in small incremental amounts. It hadn't made sense to her, but her interrogators seemed disinterested by the fact.

Ellie remembered the day she first had an indication that she had leverage in her situation.

John Casey had just witnessed yet another session where she had been cut to the bone. He was required to listen to her bi-weekly report to ensure that she never intentionally or accidently used Chuck's name or gave any indication of their whereabouts to the unseen examiners.

Whether out of frustration from the call or the stress of the overall situation, Ellie started to cry after a particularly bad call. It had made John clench in his chair as Ellie wiped a tear from her face. "They just don't like me," offered Ellie apologetically.

Casey's face had turned molten red and she practically fell back out of her chair when John throttled the table between them. "Do you think this is some congeniality contest?"

"Who gives a shit what those fuckers think!" snarled Casey. "Don't you get that they all want to be you? They can't bare the fact that they can't get near The Intersect. So they are trying to prove to their bosses that you are in over your head."

"But I am Casey. I don't know nearly enough about Chuck's condition. It's all top secret and they won't tell me," cried Ellie hopelessly.

Casey grimaced and shook his head in dismissively. "You are Chuck's primary medical doctor. After what has happened, unless those pricks prove that you are incompetent, they won't be allowed to ever meet Chuck and they damn well know it."

"But I…"

"Stand your ground. Force Beckman to give you clearance. Or soon, those asses will be here and you won't," growled the NSA agent.

Seeing the blood leave Ellie's face, Casey grimaced uncomfortably and tried to explain more gently.

"If you make your case logically as to why you need information on the technology behind the intersect in order to establish a treatment plan for Chuck, you will get the information."

"The government is comfortable with you, his sister, providing medical care to Chuck. They don't want other doctors who might be affiliated with Fulcrum or have their own agendas to have any access to Chuck. You are the government's first choice unless you prove to be incompetent. "

"The government doesn't want me," denied Ellie. "The government doesn't want me. I'm just Chuck's tag along sister who happens to be a doctor."

"You're wrong," replied Casey. "As his sister, its true that you are important because you help reinforce Chuck's emotional well being. But they all trust that as his sister, you're less likely to betray him. That goes a long way in minimizing the possibility of a security breech. The government knows that the less people who know about Chuck, or what he looks like, the better to maintain this secret," explained Casey.

"You just have use your brain," growled Casey.

And that's exactly what Ellie did. She proved to Beckman that she needed to be briefed on the medical technology behind The Intersect.

And now as she looked out upon the cool water of Grand Lake, she marveled at the darkness that was in the hearts of men. It seemed so far away, unimaginable in this clear mountain retreat. But now she realized how very clever evil could be.

She had finally seen the medical reports on Chuck and the other poor subjects who had also been given The Intersect. It was clear that her brother truly was a medical marvel. It was a wonder that he was even still alive.

But it was also clear that Chuck was living on borrowed time. There would be no cures from the government. Quite frankly they were too invested in keeping Chuck for their use. They had even allowed the blond CIA agent to return to the Estate. Ellie was sure it was to distract Chuck from what was truly happening. The government would use Chuck until his hapless body could do no more. She hated the government and its blond temptress. Her presence seemed to reinforce the trickery that seemed to pervade their existence.

It both angered and focused Ellie. She was the only one who could truly free Chuck.

And so the young doctor began to plan her own dangerous agenda.


End file.
